Collision of two trains claimed life to at least 13 people, and injured around 50 others last Sunday night in southeastern India, according to the latest tally released by local authorities.

The collision and derailment of the trains took place between two cities in the state of Andhra Pradesh and the cause of the tragedy is estimated to be a signal violation by a passenger train driver.

“Thirteen passengers are dead and fifty others wounded. Rescue operations are underway,” Nagalaxmi S., a spokesperson for the state government, told the press.

Based on the first conclusions of a preliminary investigation, the collision was due to “human error”the Indian minister responsible for rail transport said in a statement.

Federal Prime Minister Narendra Modi said via X (the former Twitter) that he had spoken to the minister and offered his “condolences to the bereaved families” while praying for “the speedy recovery of the injured”.

India, a country with one of the largest railway networks in the world, has recorded an alarming number of fatal train accidents in its history. However, rail safety has improved in recent years thanks to investment and technological advances.

The deadliest accident of this nature in Indian history remains that of 6 June 1981 in the state of Bihar, where seven carriages of a train crossing a bridge plunged into a river, killing between 800 and 1,000 people.

In June, collision of three trains in the state of Odisha (east) resulted in the loss of nearly 300 human lives and the injury of more than a thousand people due to a problem in the branch system.

While two months later, in August, at least nine people died in southern India after a fire broke out in a carriage stopped at a station, attributed to a passenger heating water to make tea.