Multiple British people involved in Machu Picchu deadly train crash
A number of British nationals have been involved in a head-on train crash that has left at least one person dead near Machu Picchu in Peru.
The incident happened as the two trains taking tourists to and from the famed archaeological site slammed into each other on Tuesday.
The conductor of one of the trains has since been identified as the victim, while another 40 people have been injured, authorities said, updating an earlier toll.
Footage sent by passengers to the RPP television channel showed injured people lying next to the tracks with two damaged locomotives standing idle nearby.
The carriages are shown with broken windows and dented sides, stuck on tracks set between a forest and a rock wall.
A dozen ambulances and medical personnel were deployed to the site in a remote Andean area without direct road access.
A Foreign Office statement confirmed the involvement of an unspecified number of British travellers.
It said: ‘We are supporting a number of British nationals involved in a train collision near Machu Picchu, Peru, and are in contact with local authorities.’
Jhonathan Castillo Gonzalez, a captain with the police department in the nearby city of Cuzco, said that the train services along the line connecting Machu Picchu with Cuzco were suspended.
Authorities have not yet shared details regarding the cause of the crash.
A UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1983, the ancient fortified complex receives some 4,500 visitors on average each day, many of them foreigners, according to the tourism ministry.
Around 1.5 million people flock to Machu Picchu every year, most of whom arrive by train.
Most take a train and a bus to reach the historic site high in the Andes mountains.
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