A fuel train derailed in Battambang city just past 12:30 PM on September 19, 2026, sending four tanker cars crashing onto their sides.
Train No. 6697 was hauling 13 cars of diesel and 13 of gasoline along the northern railway line when it went off the tracks at the 277-kilometer mark in O Char sangkat. The accident overturned four tank cars: three loaded with diesel (numbers 09, 12, and 13) and one with gasoline (number 14). Local reports confirmed that no one was injured or killed, though a stretch of the track was heavily damaged.
Response teams from the Ministry of Public Works and Transport’s Railway Department and Royal Railway Cambodia moved in quickly to begin emergency repairs. Local officials, police, and several fire trucks rushed to the scene to secure the area and guard against any risk of fire. Ministry spokesman Phorn Rim urged nearby residents not to bring buckets to scoop up the spilled fuel, warning that it posed a major safety hazard and would only hinder police and repair crews working at the site.
The neighborhood along the tracks is typical for the area, lined with row shophouses and roadside stalls where motorbikes kick up dust as they pass. With fuel leaking onto the ground, a sharp, pungent stench hung heavy in the midday heat while curious onlookers gathered nearby to see what happened. Fire crews remained on standby as workers labored to clear the overturned tankers and fix the rails so regular travel could resume as soon as possible.
