Several killed, 13 injured as train derails near Milan

A train derailment near Italy's financial capital Milan killed at least three people and left 13 people seriously injured, the government said in a statement on Thursday.

Several carriages of a regional train operated by Trenord derailed early in the morning at the Pioltello Limito station, less than 20 km (13 miles) outside the station Milan, Italian state-owned rail company Ferrovie dello Stato said. It did not give further details.

"There currently are three dead, five severely injured and eight injured in 'code yellow', all of which in hospital," the body representing the Interior Ministry in Milan said in an emailed statement.

Search and rescue efforts ended and all those who presented minor injuries were given shelter in a nearby gymnasium.

The head of Milan police said an investigation has been opened, with railway police interrogating the train driver and first evidence pointing at either a collapse of the tracks or a problem with a track switch.

A spokesperson for Trenord said the train was travelling at normal speed as it was approaching the station.

Train circulation between Milan and the nearby city of Brescia was halted after the accident, Ferrovie dello Stato added.

Trenord is a joint venture between railway operator FNM and Trenitalia, a unit of Ferrovie dello Stato.

SS