Russian train death toll rises to 19

An explosion ripped through a commuter train in southern Russia near the war-torn region of Chechnya today, killing at least 19 people and wounding 59 others.

Authorities suspected the blast was a terrorist bombing, said Sergei Kozhemyakin, a spokesman at the ministry’s regional office in Rostov-on-Don.

Preliminary information suggested the 8am (5am Irish time) explosion was a bomb, sources said while speaking on condition of anonymity.

The blast was in the second car of a train travelling between the cities of Mineralnye Vody and Essentuki.

The second car toppled over on its side and emergency workers struggled to pull victims from the mounds of shattered glass in the wreckage. A third car also derailed.

A small fire broke out in the electrical wiring in the wreckage, hampering rescue efforts.

Six people were killed in two blasts on the same train line in September. No group claimed responsibility for those attacks.

Russia has been hit recently by numerous bombings and suicide attacks, which the government usually blames on rebels from Chechnya.