Satellite image shows Thailand crane before train crashpublished at 10:37 GMT

10:37 GMT

Paul Brown
BBC Verify senior journalist

We’ve been looking at the aftermath of a rail crash in Thailand which has killed at least 28 people, caused by a crane being used to construct an overpass falling onto a train passing beneath it.

Footage from the scene in central Thailand shows the mangled train wreckage and part of a specialised crane called a launching gantry, used in the construction of bridges, overpasses and viaducts, has collapsed.

The imagery also shows that the incident occurred close to a level crossing, which we were able to identify in the town of Skhiu in Nakhon Ratchasima province.

Satellite imagery captured by Planet on 5 January shows the crane at around the same spot. A similar-looking red crane visible around half a mile (1km) to the east in a Google Street View image taken in March last year.

The overpass was being built as part of a high-speed rail project connecting Thailand and China.

The train was travelling along tracks running beneath the structure, en-route to Ratchathani province from Bangkok. Rail authorities say that 195 people were on board, with 80 people reported injured.

A BBC graphic showing (from top left) the location of the crash on a map of Thailand; satellite imagery of the red structure and work on the overpass; an agency pic of the aftermath