A freight train traveling from Tenke to Lubudi in the Lualaba province of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) derailed on Friday, December 13, at 10 p.m., resulting in at least five fatalities and around twenty injuries, according to a provisional report by the Nouvelle Société Civile Congolaise (NSCC) shared with Actualité.cd. The accident also caused significant material damage.
The derailment occurred in Kansenia village, located 55 km from Lubudi, as confirmed by Lambert Menda, NSCC coordinator.
He attributed the accident to aging railway infrastructure and a technical failure. Witnesses reported that many passengers were precariously riding on the wagons, a widespread but dangerous practice on such convoys.
This incident adds to a troubling series of train accidents in the DRC:
- March 11, 2022: A derailment in Lubudi resulted in 75 deaths and 125 injuries, 28 of them serious.
- April 3, 2022: Another accident in the same province claimed six lives and injured several.
- April 10, 2024: A derailment at PK36 on the Kisangani-Ubundu route in Tshopo province left four dead.
The latest accident highlights ongoing safety challenges in the DRC’s railway system, exacerbated by aging infrastructure, technical failures, and unsafe practices like overcrowding on freight trains.
These recurring tragedies underline the critical need for investment in infrastructure and the implementation of stringent safety measures to prevent further loss of life.
