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Over 30 Said Hurt in Myanmar Crash

 .c The Associated Press

  
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) - Two passenger trains collided outside Myanmar's
capital, knocking carriages off the rails and injuring more than 30 people,
officials and witnesses said today. 

The Friday accident went unreported in Myanmar's tightly controlled media
and the cause and details are unclear. A government official, speaking on
condition of anonymity, said 10 people were only slightly injured. 

But a railways official, also speaking on condition of anonymity, said that
33 people were hurt, none fatally. Other witness reports said that five or
more passengers died, but they could not be confirmed. 

The railways official said the accident happened Friday afternoon at
Toegyaung Galay, 7 miles northeast of downtown Yangon. 

A local train from Bago, 40 miles northeast of Yangon, rammed at high speed
into the overnight express bound from the capital to the northern city of
Mandalay, the official said. The government spokesman said the express was
waiting for a signal to change when it was rammed from behind, causing
several cars to derail. 

Local people saw ambulances ferrying injured passengers to the nearby
Thingankyun General Hospital, where doctors said seven people were
hospitalized after the crash. 

A train passenger estimated that around five people had died, while a
fireman who helped in the rescue operation put the figure higher. They did
not wish to give their names, fearing problems with authorities. 

On Tuesday, the official New Light of Myanmar newspaper showed Pan Aung, the
railways minister, inspecting Bago train station the day after the crash and
``giving instructions.'' It did not mention the accident. 

The military regime severely restricts the free flow of information in
Myanmar, also known as Burma. News perceived as negative, such as natural
disasters and accidents, is usually suppressed. 

Myanmar railways, largely reliant on aging rolling stock running on rails
laid during the British colonial era, which ended over 50 years ago, has
suffered a number of fatal train accidents in the past. 

In December 1994, more than 100 people were killed when a passenger train
traveling from extreme northern Kachin State to Mandalay plunged into a
ravine after brakes failed. 

AP-NY-12-22-99 0640EST