Mexico City metro overpass collapse kills at least 23

An elevated section of the Mexico City metro collapsed and sent the train plunging toward a busy boulevard late Monday, killing at least 23 people and injuring at least 79, city officials said.

Rescuers found four bodies inside a rail car that was dangling from the overpass but were unable to remove them. It was not clear if those dead were included among the toll of 23. A crane carefully lowered the car to the ground Tuesday.

Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum said one of the concrete beams collapsed as a train passed over it about 10:30 p.m. in one of the deadliest episodes in the history of the city’s subway system, which is among the world’s busiest.

Mexican Foreign Relations Secretary Marcelo Ebrard called the collapse “the most terrible accident we have ever had in mass transportation.” Ebrard was Mexico City’s mayor from 2006 to 2012, when the affected line was built.