All passenger train services in Crimea have been suspended following a Ukrainian drone attack on the Moscow – Simferopol train. According to Russian authorities, as a result of the strike, the assistant driver was killed, and another person was injured.
Passenger rail services in Crimea have been completely halted following a drone attack on the Moscow – Simferopol train.
The carrier "Grand Service Express," which operates rail routes between Russia and the occupied peninsula, announced the cessation of services.
According to local authorities, a Ukrainian drone struck the locomotive of a passenger train during the night. As a result of the incident, the assistant driver was killed, and the driver sustained injuries.
After the attack, passengers from several trains were evacuated. This includes trains traveling on the routes Moscow – Simferopol, Saint Petersburg – Simferopol, and Saint Petersburg – Sevastopol. People were transported by buses to Simferopol, from where they will need to continue their journey by alternative means.
What is important to know: rail transport remains one of the key ways to deliver passengers between Russia and Crimea, especially after restrictions were placed on several airports in southern Russia. Therefore, even a temporary halt in services affects a large number of travelers.
There has been no official announcement regarding the timeline for the resumption of services. Additionally, no information has been published about the extent of the damage to the railway infrastructure and the locomotive.
Drone attacks on targets in Crimea have been occurring regularly since the beginning of the full-scale war. However, cases where the consequences lead to a complete halt of passenger rail services on the peninsula remain relatively rare.
Currently, railway services and authorities are assessing the consequences of the incident and working on restoring operations.
The situation demonstrates that Crimea's transport infrastructure remains one of the targets in the ongoing confrontation between Ukraine and Russia, and the consequences of such attacks increasingly directly affect civilian passengers.
