Updated Jun 7, 2021 - World

Dozens dead after 2 trains collide in Pakistan

Axios

Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan during a press conference at the Presidential Palace in Kabul on November 19, 2020. — Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan has ordered an investigation following the train collision. Photo: Wakil Kohsar/AFP via Getty Images

Two passenger trains collided in southern Pakistan Monday, killing at least 51 people and wounding more than 100 others, per AP.

Details: The Millat Express train derailed at about 3:30 a.m. local time for unknown reasons. The Sir Syed Express train hit it minutes later, officials said, per AP. The two trains were carrying about 1,100 passengers.

What they're saying: Prime Minister Imran Khan tweeted that he has asked Railways Minister Azam Khan Swati to go to the crash scene and oversee rescue operations, adding he has ordered a "comprehensive investigation into railway safety fault lines."

Swati said authorities were also investigating the cause of the collision, but it's "too early to say whether the accident was due to sabotage or due to the dilapidated condition of the train track," according to the New York Times.

The big picture: Pakistan's railways have a poor safety record and the system is dogged by"corruption and mismanagement," per the NYT.

Khan pledged to improve the badly maintained, aging system when he was elected in 2018, but train accidents have continued under his government — notably in 2019 when a train caught fire and killed over 70 people, the NYT notes.

Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout.

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Dozens dead after 2 trains collide in Pakistan

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