Collision between train, minibus leaves 6 dead in Turkey

A collision between a freight train and a minibus in northwest Turkey killed six people and injured six others Saturday, Turkish news agency Demiroren reported.

The crash at a railroad crossing in Ergene, Tekirdag province, involved a minibus carrying factory workers and a train headed to nearby Cerkezkoy at 8 a.m. local time (0500 GMT), the news agency said.

The people who died all were in the minibus, which was dragged in front of the train after the impact. Images showed the crumpled vehicle lying on its roof alongside the train tracks.

In 2018, 25 people died when a passenger train derailed in nearby Corlu. That accident was blamed on heavy rain causing an embankment to collapse.

Last year, Turkey's Chamber of Mechanical Engineers said railway accidents in the country were three times the global average, while labor unions warned that cost-cutting has led to safety issues.