Tragedy at dawn jolts nation; 120 killed as Indore-Patna Express derails in UP

At least 120 passengers were killed and more than 200 injured, nearly half of them grievously, in the worst train accident in recent years when 14 coaches of the Indore-Patna Express derailed here, just a little after 3 am on Sunday due to a suspected rail fracture.

Passengers were jolted out of their sleep as the Patna-bound train jumped tracks, badly damaging four ordinary sleeper coaches, in which hundreds were trapped.

Of the four coaches, S1 and S2 telescoped into each other and most of the casualties were feared to have been in these two compartments.

S3 and S4 coaches also suffered severe damage. Though an AC-III tier coach was affected the casualties were not heavy. As railway personnel, assisted by the Army, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the state police carried out search-and-rescue operations, the number of casualties kept on increasing by the hour.

By 8 pm, 120 bodies were recovered from the mangled coaches and most of them were taken to the Mati mortuary in Kanpur rural, according to IG (Kanpur range) Zaki Ahmad, who said a few more passengers were feared trapped.

"We have plans to work through the night. We have put up lights," Army's Kanpur Station Commander Brig BM Sharma said.

Among the dead, 62 have been identified. At least 20 are from Uttar Pradesh, 15 from Madhya Pradesh and six from Bihar and one each from Maharashtra and Gujarat.

Seventy-six passengers were seriously injured and 150 others received minor injuries, Ahmad said. "Over 150 injured people have been rushed to nearby hospitals in the area. More than 30 ambulances were pressed into service," he said.

Minister of State for Railways Manoj Sinha told reporters that it seems the cause of the accident is rail fracture. With several passengers feared trapped, rescue personnel employed cold cutters to break open the compartments as gas cutters produce excessive heat and suffocation and would hamper rescue efforts.

"We saw death whisk past us," was the common refrain from the survivors. Several passengers frantically looked for their loved ones.

Ghazipur resident Pramod Biswakarma, who is getting married in 10 days, was one of the survivors. The 27-year-old groom-to-be was travelling from Indore to Varanasi, along with 10 of his relatives, he told WION/DNA. Biswakarma escaped with minor injuries and a broken little finger. But 16 hours after the accident, he isn't sure if all his relatives have been rescued from the coaches.

He lost Rs 30,000 and the clothes he was carrying for wedding. Thirty-two-year-old Archana Sharma and her husband, part of the wedding group, also escaped with minor injuries. Archana was on the upper berth of the S2 coach. "I woke up when the train shook suddenly. Just as I lifted my head to check what was happening, the wall of the train fell, pushing me from the upper berth to the floor," she said.

Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu has ordered an inquiry into the accident. "Inquiry team will start investigation immediately. All necessary assistance provided to the affected, we are taking care," Prabhu tweeted. Commissioner of Railway Safety (Eastern circle) PK Acharya, who is heading the inquiry, is scheduled to start his probe on Monday.

What causes rail fractures?

Poor track maintenance, lack of proper fittings and ballast on railway lines cause rail fracture. While a simple crack may not be of much concern, a severe fracture causing separation of tracks could lead to derailment.

Could it have been averted?

It seems the absence of Linke Holfmann Bush (LHB) coaches – the ones used in Rajdhani and Shatabdi Express trains – is one reason for the high death toll. According to an official, though the Railway Ministry made it clear three years back itself that LHB coaches are a must, the Railways has been reverting to coaches made at the Integral Coach Factory (ICF). LHB coaches, unlike ICF ones, do not climb over each other in the event of an accident as they have more in-built safety features that can absorb shock and the impact of derailment more effectively, he said. As to why the Railways are still using ICF coaches, he said one reason could be that LHB coaches would require redoing of tracks.