Odisha train accident: CM Naveen Patnaik reaches accident spot

Balasore: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik Saturday visited the accident spot in Balasore where three trains collided leaving 238 deaths and more than 900 injured.

He arrived after Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw reached the accident spot.

Vaishnaw said that a detailed high-level inquiry will be conducted and the rail safety commissioner will also conduct an independent inquiry.

The train crash happened near the Bahanaga Baazar station in Balasore district, about 250 km south of Kolkata and 170 km north of Bhubaneswar, around 7 pm Friday.

In a video shared by news agency ANI, Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik and Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw were seen interacting with officials on the ground overseeing the rescue operations.

The Naveen Patnaik also reached Balasore district hospital to meet the injured passengers.

CM Patnaik took to Twitter and wrote, “I am concerned to learn about the Karmandal Express accident in Baltimore. It was indeed a very fatal accident. The Revenue Minister and SRC have ordered to visit the spot and supervise all the work. We wish everyone the best of care and the best of luck to the injured.”

Officials in Bhubaneswar said 200 ambulances, 50 buses, and 45 mobile health units were working at the accident site, besides 1,200 personnel. The bodies were being taken to the hospitals in all kinds of vehicles, including tractors.

Gas cutters were used to extricate the bodies from under the derailed coaches. Disaster management personnel and firemen were busy at work trying to extricate bodies as dawn broke on this tiny way station on the east coast railway line.

The Odisha government issued helpline 06782-262286. The railway helplines are 033-26382217 (Howrah), 8972073925 (Kharagpur), 8249591559 (Balasore), and 044- 25330952 (Chennai).

So far, 18 long-distance trains have been cancelled due to the accident, which happened on the Howrah-Chennai main line in the Kharagpur division of the South Eastern Railway.

PNN