Lucknow: At least four persons have died while over 23 have been injured after at least eight coaches of the Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express (15904) derailed near Uttar Pradesh’s Gonda district Thursday.
The incident happened at around 2.30 pm near Pikaura village between the Motiganj and Jhilahi railway stations when the coaches derailed from the railway track and tilted to the left.
UP Relief Commissioner Naveen Kumar confirmed that at least 20 persons have been injured. “Two passengers have died and 20 have been injured. A 40-member medical team and 15 ambulances have reached the spot. More medical teams and ambulances will shortly reach the spot,” Kumar said in a statement.
The toll was subsequently updated to four dead and 23 injured by the authorities. The identity of the deceased remains unclear.
Eye-witnesses said that this could have been much worse had the train not been moving at slow speed.
“This accident happened at around 2.30 pm, about 20 kilometers away from Gonda. At least two bogies have completely tilted. Casualties are possible. People are somehow leaving the spot, trying to save themselves,” one of the passengers told media persons.
Visuals from the site of the accident, in possession of ThePrint, show passengers climbing the derailed coaches, trying to collect their belongings, while the bodies of those who have died are seen nearby.
Some passengers were seen transporting the deceased on a charpoy.
According to the North Eastern Railway, relief vehicles have reached the spot near Gonda.
“Helpline numbers have been issued to help the rail passengers and for more information: Gonda – 8957400965; Lucknow – 8957409292; Siwan – 9026624251; Chhapra – 8303979217; Deoria Sadar – 8303098950,” Pankaj Kumar Singh, Chief Public Relations Officer for the North Eastern Railway, Gorakhpur said.
While two trains have been cancelled, 11 have been diverted due to the accident. The trains which have been cancelled are Gonda-Gorakhpur Memu Special and Gonda Passenger Special; while those diverted include Katihar-Amritsar Express, Amarnath Express, Gorakhdham Express, Vaishali Express, Bihar S Kranti Express, Sapt Kranti Express, Satyagrah Express, Avadh Express, Kushinagar Express, Bagh Express and Shahid Express.
Four teams of State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) are making their way to the site of the accident from four districts in UP — Gonda, Balrampur, Shravasti and Siddharthnagar.
“CM Yogi has directed the district administration officials to ensure that all possible help reaches the passengers. All hospitals, community health centres (CHC) and primary health centres have been put on alert mode. The NDRF team has been directed to expedite the efforts for relief,” a statement from the CMO office said.
The ministry of railways, too, issued helpline numbers for passengers and their kin.
In regard with the derailment of 15904 Dibrugarh Express in Lucknow division of North Eastern Railway, the helpline numbers are issued. pic.twitter.com/pe3CECrnmf
— Ministry of Railways (@RailMinIndia) July 18, 2024
“In regard with the derailment of 15904 Dibrugarh Express in Lucknow division of North Eastern Railway, the helping numbers are issued,” the ministry said in an X post, listing the number for commercial controller Tinsukia, Furkating, Mariani, Simalguri, Tinsukia, Dibrugarh and Guwahati.
(Edited by Zinnia Ray Chaudhuri)
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