The Argentine government Tuesday ordered the temporary takeover of the TBA
rail company nearly a week after a crash of one of the operator's trains which
killed 51 people and injured more than 700.
Planning Minister Julio de
Vido said President Cristina Kirchner ordered the action due to “the public
interest and the security of users.”
The official said the
government would assume control for 15 days or until a criminal investigation
is completed.
Fifty-one people died and
another 703 were injured in last Wednesday's crash, when the train slammed into
a bumper at Terminal Once. The train was carrying about 2,000 people.
The severity of the rail
disaster for Argentina ranked behind only the 1970 train accident in Benavides
that killed 236 people and the 1978 wreck in Santa Fe province that resulted in
55 deaths.
The Argentine inspector
general, who oversees the functioning of the state railways, called last week
for authorities to cancel the concession to private company Trains of Buenos
Aires (TBA), which operated the train and is part of the Cirigliano Group.
The top official, who audited
the same suburban train line in 2008, said the accident was caused by a “lack
of respect for the most basic rules.”
No charges have been filed in
the case, but Kirchner has called for an expedited investigation.
Transport Minister Juan Pablo
Schiavi said the trains would continue to function.
“Maybe there will be fewer
trains, maybe the schedules will be adjusted but this should not lead to
chaos,” Schiavi said.
The line where the accident
occurred, known as the Sarmiento branch, carries a daily average of 250,000
passengers in the Argentine capital region of some 14 million people.
The line was among those
privatized under the 1989-99 government of president Carlos Menem, who
privatized oil and gas companies, electricity producers and some 10,000
kilometers (6,000 miles) of rail lines.
.jpg)
Criminals
not identified, placed at cashiers to collect the riot while they amordazaban
the victims. Past 2 p.m. the great mutiny was preparing to leave when a cashier
can immediately play the alarm, officials who were giving a round heeded the
call and after several shots streets below failed to stop the vehicle, which
was found in an abandoned parking lot. Apparently criminals changed their
vehicles and fled with the mutiny. 
