Rescuers give an interview in front of damaged carriages of the Glacier Express passenger train at the accident site in Fiesch.

30 July 2010

Driver Error to Blame for
Glacier Express Crash

Fiesch Switzerland - Human error has been blamed for the Glacier Express train crash in Switzerland last week that killed an elderly Japanese tourist and injured another 42 people.
 
Most of the injured were Japanese and eight passengers are still in hospital. An accident investigation found the derailment was caused by the driver going too fast.
 
Jacques Melly, Vice-president of the Valais government said:  "The government of Valais deeply regrets this tragedy and we offer our sincerest apologies to everybody concerned and we wish, to the people involved, enough strength and courage to help them through this sad period."
 
There was intense criticism in the Japanese media when the mountain train started running again just two days after the accident.
 
A Japanese tour operator executive said establishing the cause of the crash was vital to restoring customer confidence in the service.