Balasore, June 03: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has embarked on a journey to Odisha to survey the site of a tragic three-train accident in the Balasore district. The horrific incident that occurred on Friday night resulted in the loss of nearly 300 lives and left over 900 individuals injured.
According to official details, the prime minister will first visit the site of the train accident and then proceed to a hospital in Cuttack, where some of the injured are being treated.
Meanwhile, the railways announced today that the rescue operations at the accident site have been concluded. The train collision reported as the fourth deadliest in India based on available records, took place near the Bahanaga Baazar station in the Balasore district,
approximately 250 km south of Kolkata and 170 km north of Bhubaneswar, around 7
pm on Friday. In response, the Railway Ministry has ordered an investigation into the
incident.
The inquiry into the train accident will be led by AM Chowdhary, Commissioner of Railway Safety, South East Circle, under the Ministry of Civil Aviation, according to a statement issued by the Indian Railways.
Several coaches of the 12864 Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express, en route to Howrah, derailed and toppled onto adjacent tracks, as reported by an official. In addition, a goods train was involved in an accident when some coaches of the Coromandel Express, heading to Chennai, collided with its wagons after derailing.
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Rescue teams utilized gas cutters to extract bodies from beneath the derailed coaches. Disaster management personnel and firefighters were also deployed to assist in the recovery operations.
The impact of the accident resulted in extensive damage to the railway tracks at the scene, with mangled coaches scattered all around. Some coaches were stacked on top of each other, while others had overturned due to the force of the collision.
Eyewitnesses described the terrifying moment when the train carriages tilted and passengers were thrown out. Locals rushed to the scene upon hearing loud noises and were met with a distressing sight of derailed coaches, resembling a twisted mass of metal.
“The local people really went out on a limb to help us… They not only helped in pulling out people but retrieved our luggage and got us water,” shared Rupam Banerjee, one of the passengers, during an interview with reporters.
The Balasore district hospital is currently overwhelmed with injured individuals, with stretchers lining the corridors and additional beds set up to accommodate the surge in patients.
As investigations into the cause of the accident continue, Prime Minister Narendra
Modi’s imminent arrival in Odisha aims to provide support and solidarity to the affected communities while ensuring that adequate measures are taken to prevent such tragedies in the future.
