Costa Rica Train Wreck Injures Nearly 80

At least 77 people were injured during a train incident in the Costa Rican capital of San Jose, according to local media.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – A head-on collision of two commuter trains in the Costa Rican capital of San Jose left at least 77 people injured, national media reported Friday.

Five patients, including two engineers and two assistants, have been transferred to medical centers in serious condition, Costa Rica’s La Nacion daily reported. Forty-one people came away with minor injuries, and 31 were in stable condition. 

"I do not understand why this lack of communication. Knowing that there is an interchange line ahead, I do not understand why there was no communication," one of the passengers en route to work told the newspaper.

The accident reportedly took place on a track curve in the Pavas district of San Jose some 1,600 feet from the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock building.

Rail transport authority Incofer President Guillermo Santana was quoted as saying in a briefing that preliminary findings pointed to human error.

"Lack of radio communication can be one of the causes," Santana said.

The Red Cross, fire department, traffic police and national security forces assisted in the rescue effort.