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Second train derails in England in less than 24 hours amid record heatwave

London (CNN) — A second train has derailed in southeast England in less than 24 hours, British Transport Police said on Friday, adding that its officers were attending the scene of the incident.

The force said that “rear carriages of a train have derailed in an upright position” just after 2 p.m. local time (9 a.m. ET) on Friday near the town of Wickford in Essex.

“We’re responding alongside paramedics and the fire service. There are currently no reported injuries,” the British Transport Police said in a statement.

The news comes less than 24 hours after eighteen people were injured, including two seriously, after a passenger train derailed near Lewes in East Sussex, about 45 miles south of London.

Investigations into what caused the derailments are still under way, but experts have warned the extreme heat that England is currently experiencing could be a factor.

“If the issue is loss of track alignment, then it could be heat expansion in rails causing the rails to expand and buckle,” John Lawrence, the Chair of the Institution of Engineering and Technology’s Railway Technical Network, told the Science Media Center.

“This stress can be compounded by multiple days and evenings of hot weather, not allowing heat to dissipate,” he added.

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Air traffic controller saves day when 2 jets with same call number converge

▶ Watch Video: American Airlines flies two jets with same flight number simultaneously in dangerous mistake An air traffic controller's quick thinking helped avert a dangerous situation late Thursday night when two American Airlines jets — one landing in Phoenix, Arizona, and the other simultaneously taking off — shared the same flight number and radio frequency.The veteran air traffic controller realized that American Airlines Flight 2482 from Chicago that was coming in for landing at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport — and one that had just taken off and was headed for Chicago — were on converging flights and had the same call sign.After catching the issue, the veteran air traffic controller began giving instructions to the pilots by differentiating their descriptions, using "American 2842 departing" and "American 2482 arriving."He was able to keep the aircraft separated, and both continued on their way without incident."I've been working air traffic for 25 years," the air traffic controller told the pilots, according to dispatch audio recorded by ATC.com. "I've never seen two aircraft pretty much merge with the same call sign. That's pretty incredible."He later added, "It could have been disastrous, but I'm glad it all worked out."The Federal Aviation Administration said the two planes maintained the required separation the entire time. The FAA said it is investigating the incident.American Airlines told CBS News the situation was triggered because the flight arriving from Chicago O'Hare International Airport was delayed. That plane was supposed to land in Phoenix, take on new passengers, and then return to Chicago on the same callsign.Because of the delay, however, a different aircraft was brought in so the waiting passengers in Phoenix could depart.American Airlines said in a statement it was "reviewing the details related to two American flights with the same callsign.""The diligence and professionalism of air traffic controllers and our pilots ensured required separation was always maintained and the issue was identified and addressed," the airline said. "Both flights continued safely and without incident." 
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