ID :
124841
Sat, 05/29/2010 - 12:35
Auther :

TRAIN-SCENE 2LST


Mamoni Begum, a young woman also from North 24
Parganas, frantically searched for her six year-old daughter
with whom she was travelling to Mumbai to meet her husband.
Passengers recounted the harrowing experience saying
they were thrown off their seats as the goods train coming
from the other direction rammed into the coaches which had
overturned on the down line. The tragedy happened at around
1:30 am (local time).
Five coaches, S-4 to S-8, were the most badly hit with
S-9 having telescoped into the one ahead of it. Four wagons of
the goods train also derailed.
"It was pitch dark and I don't remember what happened
thereafter. When I regained my sense, I somehow managed to
scramble out of the coach through the emergency window," a
passenger Ajay Gupta, who was on board told PTI.
Jagabandhu Sardar, in his late forties, said he was in
S-6, one of the worst affected bogies, with his wife and three
daughters. "All of us have escaped death though some of us
have suffered injuries".
Food was being distributed among the passengers, who
waited in the open in the hot summer sun. A water tanker too
was kept at the site to provide drinking water.
National Disaster Rescue Force personnel from Kolkata
were rushed in to help rescue operations, while the disaster
rescue team of the Kolkata Police were expected to reach the
spot soon.
A 140-member National Disaster Management team would
come from Delhi to join the rescue operations, Railway
Minister Mamata Banerjee said.
The engine of the train was not damaged but the pantry
car behind it derailed followed by 12 others behind it.
The goods train engine and several rakes after it were
seen to have telescoped between S6 and S7 coaches making them
among the five worst hit ones. Under the impact of the
collision coaches S3, S4 and S5 capsized, while S1, S2 and S8
were partially damaged.
The assistant drivers of both the trains were killed
in the incident, Railway sources here said.
Salvaging work was already complete in S3 and is on in
S4, they said.
Overhead electric wires were snapped to avoid any
accident as CRPF, along with the army, paramilitary force,
state police, Government Railway Police (GRP) and Reserve
Police Force (RPF) grimly went on with the rescue operations,
which were supervised personally by Mamata Banerjee.
Medical teams of various organisations lent a helping
hand and some of the injured passengers were administered
first-aid at the spot, while the seriously injured were being
ferried to hospitals in a helicopter by the IAF, which it had
requisitioned from Kalaikunda.
Another helicopter belonging to the Border Security
Force stood by as did several ambulances, while a crane stood
by to haul the capsized bogies. PTI SAG
RBT


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