1 killed in train- truck collision at Lapland level crossing

A truck driver was killed and an engine driver was injured when a freight train collided with a heavy truck in northern Finland on Wednesday, reported Finnish language newspaper Lapin Kansa.

The accident took place at about 5:00 am at Palojärvi level crossing near the village of Kuusivaara.

Train services on the eastern Lapland track remained disrupted all day Wednesday following the accident.

The track connects Rovaniemi in central Lapland to Kemijärvi. The trains also offer touristic sleeper car services.

Passengers are transported by bus between Kemijärvi and Rovaniemi, railroad operator VR told local media.

In the accident the engine fell over. According to Lapin Kansa, there are nearly 300 level crossings of highways and train tracks in Lapland, most of which have no alert signal systems.

According to the Finnish Transport Agency, at least 27 people have been killed in level crossing accidents in the country since 2013 and all of them took place at crossings where there was no signal light or warning for vehicles about train movement.

The last level crossing accident took place on August 23, 2018. One person was killed when a private car collided with a train at a level crossing at Tervola in Lapland.