What began as an ordinary morning commute ended in chaos for hundreds of passengers travelling through northeast Thailand.

At around 9 am on Wednesday, a passenger train running from Bangkok to Ubon Ratchathani was suddenly struck by a massive construction crane that collapsed from an overhead worksite. The impact derailed the train, tore through multiple carriages and sparked a brief fire, leaving at least 22 people dead and dozens injured.

“At around 9am, I heard a loud noise, like something sliding down from above, followed by two explosions,” local resident Mitr Intrpanya told AFP.

“When I went to see what had happened, I found the crane sitting on a passenger train with three carriages. The metal from the crane appeared to strike the middle of the second carriage, slicing it in half,” Mitr said.

Rescue Teams Race Against Time

Emergency responders rushed to the crash site in the Sikhio district of Nakhon Ratchasima province, roughly 230 kilometres northeast of Bangkok. Firefighters, medical personnel and disaster response teams worked through twisted metal to reach passengers trapped inside the damaged coaches.

The fire triggered by the collision has been extinguished, police said, but rescue operations remain ongoing as authorities fear more bodies could still be inside the wreckage.

“Twenty-two people were killed, and more than 30 were injured,” a local police chief in Nakhon Ratchasima province, Thatchapon Chinnawong, told AFP.

Other reports put the number of injured at close to 80.

Nearly 200 Passengers on Board

Thailand’s Transport Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn said around 195 people were travelling on the train at the time. According to officials, two of the three carriages struck by the falling crane suffered catastrophic damage.

The minister confirmed that a formal investigation has been ordered to determine how the crane collapsed onto an active railway line.

Construction Project Under Scrutiny

Authorities said the crane was part of an under-construction high-speed rail corridor, a project valued at about $5.4 billion. The line is backed by Beijing and is intended to connect Bangkok with Kunming in China via Laos by 2028 under the Belt and Road Initiative.

Al Jazeera correspondent Tony Cheng, reporting from Bangkok, said the train was passing beneath an elevated construction section when the accident occurred.

“The train then was derailed when it hit that crane, and there was a brief fire that ensued,” Cheng said.

“Initial reports said there were only four fatalities. That very quickly jumped to 12, and we now understand from the Thai police who told Al Jazeera that it’s 22 and at this stage they are expecting it to climb,” he said.

Familiar Route, Familiar Concerns

The railway line serves densely populated regions of northeast Thailand and is frequently used by long-distance passengers. The crash has once again drawn attention to safety practices at large construction sites operating alongside active transport routes.

Thailand has witnessed multiple deadly industrial and construction accidents in recent years, often linked to weak enforcement of safety standards. As rescue work continues, authorities say accountability will be a key focus of the investigation.