New Train Incident Rattles Bulgarian State Railroads

The scene of the crash between a Bulgarian BDZ company train and an international Belgrade-Sofia train. Photo by BGNES

Three cars of the express train between the capital Sofia and the Black Sea city of Burgas have derailed Monday near the Septemvri railway station in southern Bulgaria.

The Bulgarian State Railroads, BDZ, inform that there are no injuries and all 172 passengers have been evacuated to be transported by bus. The cause of the incident remains unknown.

The derailment comes just days after Transport Minister, Aleksander Tsvetkov, declared all BDZ cars are safe. The Minister's statement was triggered by a ruling of the Sofia Administrative Court that 80% of the passenger trains in Bulgaria are operating "illegally," over expired safety certificates.

The Monday incident also came on the heels of the October 4 head-on collision between the international train from Belgrade to Sofia and a small company train of the Bulgarian State Railroad Agency, BDZ, carrying employees of the company.

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