DAMMAM, 12 March — The authorities at the Saudi Railways Organization expect normal train service between Dammam and Riyadh to resume today, as work to clear the tracks is in full swing.
The director of SRO, Khaled Al-Yahya, said yesterday that although the track for passenger trains had not been affected as a result of Sunday’s crash, passenger services along the route had been suspended as a precautionary measure.
Three people were killed, including a train driver, and one person was injured when an oil-carrying tanker train rammed into loose wagons of a goods train in Abqaiq.
Al-Yahya said a fire that broke out after the accident was very close to the tracks of the passenger train and hence it was decided to suspend the service.
It is not yet known when normal freight service will resume.
The bodies of the three victims were handed over to their relatives and they were buried yesterday at Qatif, Sihat and Jubail.
Al-Yahya said that an inquiry into the cause of the accident has already been initiated. He said it has to be discovered whether any communication was exchanged between Abqaiq and Dammam about the disconnection of nearly 20 freight cars from the goods train. The question of human error will also be looked into.
Officials at the Dammam Railway Station refunded fares to those who were booked to travel yesterday.
It was close to chaos at the SAPTACO bus station in Dammam, where disillusioned passengers rushed to catch transport to Riyadh and Ahsa. Taxis plying between Dammam and Riyadh had good business yesterday and many private operators predictably hiked their fare.
