The Nigerian Railway Corporation( NRC) has said the derailment of Warri- Itakpe train service was as a result of suspected track vandalism.
NRC’s Managing Director, Kayode Opeifa who disclosed this in a statement Sunday, said operations on the rail corridor has been suspended.
TheFact Daily reports that the derailment occured four days after resumption of train services that was suspended on the August 2 following a series of breakdowns and technical issues.
However the management said no casualties or injuries were recorded as a result of the derailment, adding that all passengers were safely evacuated.
According to NRC, the ” train derailment incident occurred yesterday at approximately 19:30 hours, involving two out of the seven coaches of our Warri-Itakpe Train Service (WITS) at Kilometer 212+8m, Agbor.
“Preliminary investigations indicate that the incident may have been caused by suspected track vandalism.We are pleased to confirm that all passengers on board were safely evacuated to Agbor, and everyone has been fully accounted for. No casualties or injuries were recorded.
The corporation said their recovery team with the support of security personnel, have been at the site since last night carrying out recovery operations.
“These efforts are progressing steadily and are expected to be completed soon.
As a precautionary measure, train services on the corridor have been temporarily suspended today to enable a comprehensive security and safety audit of the track and related infrastructure.
“We sincerely regret any inconvenience this may cause our valued passengers and the general public. Normal operations will resume as soon as it is verified safe to do so,” the NRC said.
