A woman remained comatose Tuesday after two train cars overturned in Kampot province over the weekend, railway and hospital officials confirmed.
The passenger train was traveling from Sihanoukville to Phnom Penh Saturday around 2 pm when it hit a stretch of track that had buckled under intense heat, said Sokhom Pheakvanmony, director of Royal Cambodia Railways. Two cars overturned. The unidentified woman, riding in one of the overturned cars, was slammed against its walls as the car rolled off the tracks, down the hill, and into some water. She was trapped in the flooded car for about two hours, officials said.
Two men also suffered minor injuries in the accident, officials said.
The woman, who is in her late 20s, remains in critical condition at Kampot provincial hospital.
“Now, nobody can say whether she will die or not,” said Nheak Saroeun, deputy director for the Kampot provincial hospital. She has a broken arm and severe head injuries, he said.
Officials blamed the accident on Royal Cambodian Railways.
“Accidents are going to happen again and again [on the railroad] if there is not proper repair as soon as possible. My people in Kampot need train service for daily affairs,” Kampot Governor Ly Sou said.
The authorities do not maintain the tracks, he said.
Officials said the railway does not have enough money to maintain the rails, but that a $53 million loan from Japan is in the planning stages. Repairs would begin late in 2003, he said.
“This railroad is very old; it was built in the 1950s and 1960s,” Sokhom Pheakvanmony said. Some track ties had deteriorated and could not keep the rails straight in hot weather, he said.
The warped tracks were fixed Sunday. The train continued its routes on Monday, he said.
