|
Žasliai Railway Disaster
Žasliai railway disaster occurred on 4 April 1975 near Žasliai Žasliai (, ''Zosle'') is a small town in Kaunas County in central Lithuania. In 2011, it had a population of 644. The town was first mentioned in written sources in 1457 and was granted the Magdeburg rights and its own coat of arms in 1792. Hi ..., Lithuanian SSR. A passenger train on Vilnius–Kaunas Railway hit a tank car carrying fuel. The passenger train derailed and caught fire. Soviet authorities suppressed the news of the disaster and there are persistent rumors that the official death toll of 20 dead and 80 injured is understated, but it remains the largest railway accident in Lithuania. Accident In the evening of 4 April 1975, a crowded passenger train no. 513 traveled from Vilnius to Kaunas. It was Friday, a Octave of Easter, week after Easter, and many students from Vilnius were returning home for the weekend. At 17:35 local time, the train at a speed of hit a 60-tonne tank car of a cargo train. The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lithuanian SSR
The Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic (Lithuanian SSR; ; ), also known as Soviet Lithuania or simply Lithuania, was '' de facto'' one of the constituent republics of the Soviet Union between 1940–1941 and 1944–1990. After 1946, its territory and borders mirrored those of today's Republic of Lithuania, with the exception of minor adjustments to its border with Belarus. During World War II, the previously independent Republic of Lithuania was occupied by the Red Army on 16 June 1940, in conformity with the terms of the 23 August 1939 Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, and established as a puppet state on 21 July. Between 1941 and 1944, the German invasion of the Soviet Union caused its '' de facto'' dissolution. However, with the retreat of the Germans in 1944–1945, Soviet hegemony was re-established and continued for forty-five years. As a result, many Western countries continued to recognize Lithuania as an independent, sovereign ''de jure'' state subject to internation ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |