Žasliai railway disaster  Žasliai railway disaster occurred on 4 April 1975 near Žasliai, 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. In the evening of 4 April 1975, a crowded passenger train no. 513 traveled from Vilnius to Kaunas. It was Friday, a 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 cargo train no. 2719 of 93 tank cars was traveling from Paneriai railway station near Vilnius to near Kaunas at slower speeds and had to give way to the faster passenger train by moving to the side track at the . However, its last car protruded too far into the live track. The cargo train carried fuel which leaked and caught fire. The first two cars (the locomotive and the first passenger car) of the passenger train derailed, while the third car got stuck in the tank car and suffered from particularly fierce flames. In total, there were four passenger train cars. People tried to break windows and escape the burning train while locals organized help and vehicles to bring the injured to the nearest hospital in Kaišiadorys. In particular, many remember a pregnant woman whose hand was trapped under a rail car – local men managed to free her. Passenger Arvydas Garnys helped save three children, went back to help his friend, and died in flames. His body was not found after the fire. He was posthumously awarded the Medal "For Courage in a Fire". Many died either due to fire or smoke inhalation, but many more suffered various burns. In particular, people suffered severe burns when their synthetic clothes (especially, polyester raincoats and nylon stockings) melted onto their skin due to the heat. Firemen from Kaišiadorys, Elektrėnai, Jonava, Kaunas, Kėdainiai attempted to put down the fire, but it was extinguished only by military firemen some 15 hours later. Soviet authorities suppressed the news of the disaster and provided only the basic information minimizing the number of victims.