Gonda/New Delhi | Two passengers were killed and 34 injured when eight coaches of the Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express derailed near Gonda in Uttar Pradesh on Thursday, an official said.
Ambulances and medical teams were rushed to the spot between Motiganj and Jhilahi railway stations, about 150 km from the state capital, as news of the derailment came in.
The loco pilot heard the “sound of a blast” before the derailment, an official told reporters. But he did not elaborate.
There was confusion initially over the death toll.
Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak told PTI that four people were killed, with district magistrate Neha Sharma too giving out the same number to the media. But about five hours after the 2.35 pm accident, the authorities revised the figures with Sharma saying there was one death.
“Prima facie, when teams reached the spot people were laying scattered there in bad shape due to which confusion prevailed,” she said.
One more passenger died later in the evening while being taken to Lucknow for medical treatment, UP Relief Commissioner G S Naveen said. The Railways too had reported two deaths.
The dead were identified as Saroj Kumar Singh (31), a resident of Araria in Bihar, and Rahul (38) from Chandigarh.
Thirty of the injured were being treated at two community health centres and three at the district hospital. Apart from Rahul, another passenger was sent to Lucknow.
Bad weather affected the rescue operation for a while, but police and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) completed the task.
Even before the relief teams arrived, passengers in the Assam-bound train had begun pouring out of the toppled coaches.
Some of them went back again to pull out their luggage. They then sat near the tracks, waiting as rescuers arrived.
“For a moment the coach was filled with dust and it was all dark. I don't remember what happened in the next few seconds. I only remember the cries and that a passenger pulled my hand, and helped me get out of the window," Sandeep Kumar recalled.
Dileep Singh, who was travelling up to Chhapra in Bihar, had climbed on to an upper berth for an afternoon nap when the accident took place at about 2.35 pm. He was thrown on to the berth on the opposite side.
A 40-member medical team and 15 ambulances reached the spot and more medical teams and ambulances were being sent, Relief Commissioner Kumar said during the initial stage of the relief operation.
“Train number 15904 Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express that left Wednesday night from Chandigarh derailed near Gonda Junction station between Motiganj and Jhilahi railway stations at around 2:37 pm on Thursday under the jurisdiction of North Eastern Railway (NER),” Sabyasachi De, a spokesperson said.
Union minister and local MP Kirti Vardhan Singh visited the accident spot.
“Since this train was going to Dibrugarh from Chandigarh, a special train has left from Gorakhpur to carry the passengers to their destination. The train will stop at Mankapur railway station, and buses have been arranged to take passengers to the railway station," Singh told PTI.
He said the railway's technical team will investigate the cause of the accident.
The Railway Ministry said a high level inquiry has been ordered, apart from the probe by the Commission of Railway Safety.
The ministry said an enhanced ex-gratia amount of Rs 10 lakh will be given to the relatives of those killed. The grievously injured passengers will get Rs 2.5 lakh and those with minor injuries Rs 50,000.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath directed the local administration to ensure proper medical treatment for the injured.
The authorities released several helpline numbers, including 8957400965 (Gonda) and 8957409292 (Lucknow) and 9957555960 (Dibrugarh).
Gonda (UP) | Sandeep Kumar remembers hearing the cries of a boy and his coach getting filled with dust as the Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express derailed here on Thursday.
"I remember the loud cries of a boy sitting on the berth across from me. For a moment, the coach was filled with dust and it was all dark. I don't remember what happened in the next few seconds. I only remember the cries and that some passengers pulled my hand and helped me get out of the window," said Sandeep Kumar, who was travelling in a sleeper coach.
At least eight coaches of the train derailed in the Motiganj area, about 150 km from Lucknow, near Gonda on Thursday, leaving four passengers dead and about 20 injured.
The passenger train heading to Dibrugarh from Chandigarh crossed the Gonda station at 01:58 pm. The next stoppage was Basti, but it got derailed shortly after it crossed the Motiganj railway station.
"I was sitting near the window when I heard a loud noise," recalled another passenger Manish Tiwari, 35, who was travelling in the B2 coach of the train. Tiwari said he felt a jerk that hurled him to the roof of the coach.
"I climbed to the upper berth to catch a nap after the train left Gonda. I just remember a strong jerk before being thrown on the other side's upper berth. I hoped it was a dream, but it wasn't," said Dileep Singh, who was travelling to Chhapra in Bihar.
The loud noise of the coaches leaving the track and toppling over to the left was followed by loud cries of the passengers, especially children.
The passengers started coming out of the emergency windows and doors of the tilted sleeper coaches, and some went back to pull out their belongings. In the AC coaches, passengers helped each other break the window panes and pull out those injured or stuck.
Passengers had to wade through knee-deep water in the fields on either side of the track to reach the nearby approach road. Others, shocked by the accident or injured, sat on the track itself, waiting to be rescued.
When police teams reached the spot, officials made announcements asking people to stay away from the damaged coaches. The rescuers cordoned off the area and were seen entering the damaged coaches to ensure that no passenger was left behind.
Standing at some distance, another team directed the injured passengers towards ambulances lined up at an approach road about 300 metres away. Passengers with serious injuries were carried to the ambulances in stretchers.
The district administration also arranged for buses to take the passengers to their respective places.
