A tram derailed and crashed into a building in Milan on Friday, killing two people and injuring 38 others. The incident occurred in the city centre, with the tram ploughing into a structure after the driver reportedly failed to activate a track switch.
Milan's mayor, Giuseppe Sala, confirmed that one victim was struck by the tram as it derailed, while the second was a passenger. The victims included an Italian man in his 60s and a foreign national living in the city. Firefighters provided emergency blankets to shocked passengers, and ambulances transported the seriously injured to hospital.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed her “deepest condolences” over the deaths. Initial investigations suggest the driver may have run through the last stop on the line before the accident. Lead investigator Prosecutor Marcello Viola described the impact as “devastating”.
Witness Valerio Gaglione told AFP: “There was a man who was trapped under the tram, his arm was trapped. There were lots of people injured inside the tram. I saw an old man completely covered in blood.” Another witness, Anna, who was in a nearby office, said: “I just heard an enormous bang.”
The yellow and white tram was left slung across the road outside the city centre. One passenger told ANSA: “I thought it was an earthquake. I was sitting and ended up on the floor, along with the other passengers. It was terrible.” The cause of the crash remains under investigation.
