DHAKA: The death toll in Tuesday’s derailment on the Moscow metro has risen to 19.

The Russian emergency ministry says, reports the BBC.

Scores were injured, some seriously, when a packed commuter train braked abruptly between stations in the west of the city in the morning rush hour.

Some of those hurt were carried out of the tunnel on stretchers, with the most serious cases airlifted to hospital.

The cause of the crash, one of the worst incidents ever on the metro - is reported to be a power surge.

The train derailed between Slaviansky Boulevard and Park Pobedy (Victory Park) stations in the west on the city.

Some 50 people were in a serious condition, the Itar-Tass news agency reported, quoting a health official.

‘The train slowed down abruptly, the lights went off, and then there was a spark of fire and smoke. We were blocked in,’ one passenger told Russian TV.

Another, quoted by media, said, ‘We were trapped and only got out by some miracle. I thought it was the end. Many people were hurt, mostly in the front carriage because the cars ran into each other’.

A number of bodies were recovered from the wrecked carriages but some remained underground, officials said.

More than 1,100 people were evacuated.

The packed commuter train was traveling from the north-west of Moscow to the city centre at the time of the crash.

BDST: 2023 HRS, JUL 15, 2014