Soldiers aiding rescue work at Monday's train collision in east China have begun returning to barracks.

Some 1,000 soldiers, who worked 28 hours non-stop, rescued the injured, removed dead bodies and sealed the scene.

More than 120 military vehicles cleared debris, said Zhao Zongqi, Chief of Staff of the Jinan Military Area Command.

No. 148 hospital of the People's Liberation Army treated 85 people, and performed surgery on 15, he said.

A catastrophic train collision happened at 4:40 a.m. Monday in eastern Shandong Province, leaving 70 dead and more than 400 injured.

A preliminary investigation suggested one of the trains coded T195 from Beijing was running at 131 kilometers per hour at the time of the accident, exceeding the speed limit of 80 kph.

The route reopened to traffic early on Tuesday, after more than 20 hours of interruption.

(Xinhua News Agency April 30, 2008)