Five railway workers have died after being hit by a train during overnight maintenance on a track in northern Italy.
The train, which was transporting empty carriages on the Milan-Turin line, was reportedly travelling at 160km/h when it struck the team replacing parts of the track near Brandizzo, on the outskirts of Turin.
RFI, the company which manages Italy's rail network, confirmed five maintenance workers employed by an external contractor had died after a train "not in commercial service" hit them shortly before midnight.
In a statement, it expressed its "deep sorrow" at the deaths and offered condolences to their families, adding that investigations are under way into the incident.
The fire service confirmed that "five workers were killed by a passing train" and two others were injured.
Media reports suggest the pair who escaped, including the foreman, were physically unharmed but under observation.
The train driver, one of two people in the engine cab, was unharmed but in shock, according to Italian news agencies.
Paolo Bodoni, mayor of Brandizzo, told the AGI news agency that "it's a huge tragedy".
"It cannot be excluded that there could have been a communication error," he said, adding that would be a matter for investigations.
Train service between Turin and Milan are suspended to allow investigators survey the scene.
Unions say safety failures to blame, announce strike
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni offered her "deepest condolences" to the men's families and said she was closely following the case, "with the hope of shedding light on what happened as soon as possible".
The transport ministry announced its own investigation, in addition to inquiries by judicial authorities and the rail network.
"The rule is that works on the tracks can begin when it is confirmed that there are no trains on the line," said transport minister and deputy premier Matteo Salvini.
"Prosecutors and technicians are investigating how such a dramatic accident could have happened," he added.
Outraged trade union leaders said safety had long been an concern on the railways.
Head of the CGIL union, Maurizio Landini, called a four-hour nationwide strike tomorrow by RFI maintenance staff.
"We have been condemning for some time the serious issues - never resolved - regarding safety procedures in the maintenance of the rail network.
"There is so much anger ... It's time to say enough, enough deaths at work."
Head of transport union Uiltrasporti, Claudio Tarlazzi, said the accident was "shameful and unworthy of a civilised country".
Elly Schlein, head of the centre-left Democratic Party, demanded an urgent plan of investment in safety in the workplace.
Offering her condolences to the victims' loved ones, she said: "One thing is already certain - we cannot be a country where people continue to die of work."
Italy recorded 776 fatal accidents on the job in 2020, according to EU statistics agency Eurostat - by far the highest number in the bloc.
But when adjusted for population size and the importance of different industries, the incidence rate is comparable to those in France and Austria, at around three per 100,000 people employed.
The accident is the latest tragedy on the Italian railways in recent years.
Two rail workers were killed and 31 people were injured in February 2020 when the train they were travelling on derailed before dawn near Lodi, south of Milan.
Before that Italy's most recent serious rail accident occurred in January 2018, when three women died and about 100 passengers were injured when a packed train derailed near Milan due to poor track maintenance.
