Two railway workers were killed and five others were injured on Tuesday after being hit by a train in southeastern South Korea, according to Yonhap news agency.

The passenger train struck seven railway workers, who had been moving to inspect structures on a slope near tracks in the southeastern city of Cheongdo, at about 10:50 a.m. local time (0150 GMT).

Two workers died while five others suffered heavy and light injuries. Some of the injured were in critical condition.

On board the train were 89 passengers, from whom no injury was reported.

The state-run Korea Railroad Corp. (KORAIL) was quoted as saying that the workers were carrying out an inspection of the facilities following the recent heavy rains in the region.

The police were investigating the exact cause of the accident and looking into whether safety measures were taken according to relevant laws.

xinhua