North Korea’s Hyesan-Samjiyon Railroad plagued with poor conditions, accidents
Accidents continue to plague a new railroad connecting Ryanggang Province’s cities of Hyesan and Samjiyon. Although the Hyesan-Samjiyon Railroad Line was built due to special interest from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, its current condition is so inadequate that trains cannot properly use it, local sources report.
“Accidents are occurring along the railroad that the Ryanggang 216 Division, Hyesan-Samjiyon Railroad Construction Brigade, and Railroad Ministry Regiment took charge of and completed. Accidents will probably continue to occur because the trackbed work for the 150 ri (59.91km) stretch of rail was not done properly,” a source in Ryanggang Province told Daily NK.
According to the source, the new railroad is not capable of carrying a train due to weakening of the ground, while accidents including tunnel blockages from the collapse of retaining walls continue to occur.
It has also been reported that the command unit in charge of the railroad construction is investigating the engineers and construction workers responsible for the shoddy construction. ......
[Source: Daily NK]
