Coromandel Express, which was going from Howrah to Chennai, rammed into the derailed coaches of the other train, which was going from Bengaluru to Kolkata
Thirty people were killed and 400 were injured when a passenger train hit the derailed coaches of another train in Odisha’s Balasore this evening. Many are feared trapped and the casualties may rise, officials said. A third freight train was also involved in the accident, Odisha Chief Secretary Pradeep Jena told NDTV.
Some coaches of Coromandel Express, which was going from Howrah to Chennai, had derailed and fallen on to the adjacent tracks. Yashwantpur-Howrah Superfast train, coming from the other side, rammed the derailed coaches, Railway Ministry spokesperson Amitabh Sharma told NDTV.
The details of the two trains are 12841 Shalimar-Chennai Coromandel Express and 12864 Yashwantpur-Howrah Superfast Express.
Fifteen coaches of Coromandel Express came off the tracks, while two of the other train got derailed.
Odisha Fire Services chief Sudhanshu Sarangi is supervising rescue operations. Medical colleges and hospitals in and around Balasore have been alerted and 60 ambulances have been mobilised.
Over a hundred personnel of the National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF) and its state counterpart are looking for trapped passengers and cutting through the debris to reach them.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee tweeted she is monitoring the situation continually personally with the Chief Secretary and other senior officers.
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has told Revenue Minister Pramila Malik to go to the accident site, news agency PTI reported.
Source: NDTV