Mass casualties after Russian train derailment and bridge collapse in Bryansk Oblast, officials say

Dmytro Basmat -

Editor's note: This is a developing story and is being updated.

At least seven people are dead and another 69 injured after a train derailed in Russia's Bryansk Oblast overnight on May 31, following the collapse of an overhead road bridge, Bryansk Oblast Governor Alexander Bogomaz said.

At least three children have been injured in the derailment, with one being treated in hospital with serious injuries. The conductor of the train has been killed in the incident, Russian-state media outlet TASS reported.

A total of 44 people were hospitalized as a result of the derailment, officials said.

Photos and videos posted on social media appears to show damage sustained to the train after an impact with the bridge. Russian Telegram channel ASTRA reported that a total of 379 people were on board the train at the time of derailment, around 10:45 p.m. local time.

Preliminary reports suggest that explosions were heard in the Vygonichsky district of Bryansk Oblast ahead of the impact, and Moscow Railways, a subsidiary of state-run Russian Railways, claimed that the bridge collapsed due to the "unlawful interference in transport operations."

No further information was provided as to the cause of the bridge collapse, and the full extent of the damage was not immediately clear.

The Kyiv Independent cannot verify claims made by Russian authorities. Kyiv has not commented on the reported derailment.

The passenger train, numbered 86, reportedly runs from the town of Klimovo in Bryansk Oblast to the Russian capital of Moscow.

Bryansk Oblast, located in Russia's far-west, borders Ukraine's Chernihiv and Sumy Oblast, and has been the target of various Ukrainian strikes.

Ukraine's intelligence agencies as well as Ukrainian partisan movements have previously been involved in sabotage attacks on Russian railways, disrupting the transport of military cargo toward the front line. There is no immediate indication either was involved in the train's derailment.

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