Kolkata bound Kanchanjunga Express derails after goods train hit it from behind near Siliguri in north Bengal. At least five dead and several injured | India News
SILIGURI/KOLKATA: Multiple casualties are feared after a train accident near Siliguri in north Bengal after a goods train barreled into a stationary express train that left at least three coaches mangled. Initial reports pegged the deaths at five with over 30 injured. The toll is expected to rise as rescue teams access the mangled coaches.
Eyewitnesses said attempts were underway to extract dead bodies from the affected bogies of Sealdah-bound Kanchanjunga Express.The driver of the goods train has died in the accident.
The incident was eerily similar to an accident that had happened near Balasore a year ago. In that instance, the speeding Coromandel Express had dashed into a stationary goods train. Around 300 people had died in the tragedy.
The accident happened around 8.45 am between Rangapani and Nijbari stations, around 30 km from New Jalpaiguri (NJP). The train had just left New Jalpaiguri and was heading to Sealdah via Kishanganj. Travelling passengers said the train was moving at a slow pace and had stopped when the goods train slammed into it.
An NFR official said as per preliminary investigation, the container train had overshot the signal and hit the Kanchanjunga Express mostly impacting two bogies that had two parcel vans and a guard coach.
Following the accident, the derailed compartments fell on the other track, severing train movement between Siliguri and Kolkata and cutting off the rail connection to the north-east.
While local residents were the first to rescue the injured, police, railway and administrative officials have since reached the spot. Darjeeling Police additional SP Abhishek Roy said from the spot, “The goods train hit the rear of Kanchanjunga Express. Five people have died. Around 25 to 30 people have been injured. The toll may rise. The engine of the freight train has to be sliced with a gas cutter.”
The NDRF team have also reached the spot and so far have extricated at least two bodies, a senior official told TOI.
It has been raining heavily since morning in Siliguri that hampered rescue work.
A passenger who was travelling in the train said they felt a huge jolt and a loud noise and were thrown forward were sitting inside the train when a sudden jolt was felt from behind and everyone was thrown forward.
“Before we could understand anything, passengers started running here and there. Loud screams and noise were heard everywhere. We got off the train and ran towards the rear. What we saw left us shocked. One bogie had overturned, another appeared to be hanging in the air. A third was badly mangled,” the passenger said.
Chief minister Mamata Banerjee expressed her concern on X shortly after the accident. “I am shocked to learn about the tragic train accident in the Phansidewa area of Darjeeling district. While details are awaited, the Kanchanjanga Express reportedly collided with a freight train. The DM, SP, doctors, ambulances, and disaster teams have been sent to the site for rescue, recovery, and medical assistance. Action has been initiated on a war footing,” she wrote.
The Railway Board has ordered an inquiry into the incident and whether it was a signal failure or human error that led to the accident. The loco pilots of the express train are being questioned.
“Unfortunate accident in the NFR zone. Rescue operations going on at war footing. Railways, NDRF and SDRF are working in close coordination. Injuries are being shifted to the hospital. Senior officials have reached the site,” railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw wrote on X.
Eyewitnesses said attempts were underway to extract dead bodies from the affected bogies of Sealdah-bound Kanchanjunga Express.The driver of the goods train has died in the accident.
The incident was eerily similar to an accident that had happened near Balasore a year ago. In that instance, the speeding Coromandel Express had dashed into a stationary goods train. Around 300 people had died in the tragedy.
The accident happened around 8.45 am between Rangapani and Nijbari stations, around 30 km from New Jalpaiguri (NJP). The train had just left New Jalpaiguri and was heading to Sealdah via Kishanganj. Travelling passengers said the train was moving at a slow pace and had stopped when the goods train slammed into it.
An NFR official said as per preliminary investigation, the container train had overshot the signal and hit the Kanchanjunga Express mostly impacting two bogies that had two parcel vans and a guard coach.
Following the accident, the derailed compartments fell on the other track, severing train movement between Siliguri and Kolkata and cutting off the rail connection to the north-east.
While local residents were the first to rescue the injured, police, railway and administrative officials have since reached the spot. Darjeeling Police additional SP Abhishek Roy said from the spot, “The goods train hit the rear of Kanchanjunga Express. Five people have died. Around 25 to 30 people have been injured. The toll may rise. The engine of the freight train has to be sliced with a gas cutter.”
The NDRF team have also reached the spot and so far have extricated at least two bodies, a senior official told TOI.
It has been raining heavily since morning in Siliguri that hampered rescue work.
A passenger who was travelling in the train said they felt a huge jolt and a loud noise and were thrown forward were sitting inside the train when a sudden jolt was felt from behind and everyone was thrown forward.
“Before we could understand anything, passengers started running here and there. Loud screams and noise were heard everywhere. We got off the train and ran towards the rear. What we saw left us shocked. One bogie had overturned, another appeared to be hanging in the air. A third was badly mangled,” the passenger said.
Chief minister Mamata Banerjee expressed her concern on X shortly after the accident. “I am shocked to learn about the tragic train accident in the Phansidewa area of Darjeeling district. While details are awaited, the Kanchanjanga Express reportedly collided with a freight train. The DM, SP, doctors, ambulances, and disaster teams have been sent to the site for rescue, recovery, and medical assistance. Action has been initiated on a war footing,” she wrote.
The Railway Board has ordered an inquiry into the incident and whether it was a signal failure or human error that led to the accident. The loco pilots of the express train are being questioned.
“Unfortunate accident in the NFR zone. Rescue operations going on at war footing. Railways, NDRF and SDRF are working in close coordination. Injuries are being shifted to the hospital. Senior officials have reached the site,” railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw wrote on X.
