At least 13 people were killed and more than 100 injured after an Interoceanic train derailed in southern Mexico, the country’s navy said on Sunday (December 28). The accident occurred in the town of Nizanda, with 250 passengers on board at the time.
Citing information from the navy, CNN reported that the train derailed in the Asunción Ixtaltepec area of Oaxaca state. The train was traveling along the main rail line connecting Veracruz with Salina Cruz.
According to a statement from the Mexican Navy, 36 of the injured have been hospitalized, while the remaining passengers sustained relatively minor injuries. More than 100 naval personnel and rescue vehicles were deployed to assist with rescue and relief operations at the scene.
Mexico’s Attorney General Ernestina Godoy said in a post on social media platform X that an investigation would be launched to determine the cause of the accident. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum also reacted to the incident.
In a message posted on X, President Sheinbaum said she had instructed the Secretary of the Navy and the Undersecretary for Human Rights of the Interior Ministry to travel to the site and provide support to the families of the victims and the injured.
Operated by the Mexican Navy, the Interoceanic Train links Mexico’s Pacific coast with the Gulf of Mexico. The main rail line was inaugurated in 2023 as part of a project launched under former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, aimed at accelerating economic development in southern Mexico and creating an alternative trade route to the Panama Canal.