Death toll in Russian passenger train derailment rises to 3

MOSCOW

The death toll in a train derailment in Komi, northern Russian rose to three, officials said Thursday.

Two bodies were found earlier this morning at the site of the derailment of the Vorkuta-Novorossiysk passenger train, followed by the body of a third victim, a 16-year-old girl previously reported missing, the Russian Investigative Committee said in a statement.

The Russian Health Ministry said 40 people sustained injuries in the accident, seven of them critically. Initially, the Russian Railways reported 70 injuries, but most of them turned out to be minor such as cuts and bruises.

The train had 14 cars, and nine overturned. The Russian Railways said there were a total of 232 people on the train.

The exact cause of the accident remains unclear, but it may have been triggered by heavy rainfall washing away the railway embankment.