In a tragic rail mishap early Thursday, November 27, 2025, a test train collided with a group of railway maintenance workers inside Kunming’s Luoyang Town Railway Station in southwestern China’s Yunnan Province, resulting in 11 deaths and two injuries. The incident occurred just before dawn when Test Train No. 55537, deployed to verify earthquake detection equipment along the tracks, veered uncontrollably while navigating a sharp curve within the station premises, slamming into workers who had entered the track area. Eyewitness accounts and initial reports describe the train as proceeding normally until the collision, highlighting potential lapses in track clearance protocols or signaling during the test run.

The Kunming Railway Bureau issued a statement confirming the fatalities and noting that rail services through the station resumed normal operations by midday, with emergency response teams swiftly evacuating the site and providing medical aid to the survivors. An investigation into the exact cause—possibly related to human error, mechanical failure, or inadequate safety measures for workers in active zones—has been launched by local authorities, amid calls for stricter oversight in China’s rapidly expanding high-speed rail network. This accident marks China’s most severe rail tragedy in more than a decade, echoing a 2021 incident in Gansu Province where a similar collision claimed 11 lives due to comparable safety oversights. Critics point to persistent issues like vague regulations and lax enforcement in industrial sectors as recurring factors, underscoring the need for enhanced worker protections and real-time monitoring technologies in seismic-prone regions like Yunnan. Families of the deceased are receiving compensation, while the bureau has pledged a thorough review to prevent future occurrences.