Train accident in India, at least 120 people died, 850 people were injured
Friday, July 7, 03 | 06:2023:07
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At least 120 people have been killed and 850 injured in a train collision in the eastern Indian state of Odisha.
Rescuers work at the scene of a derailed passenger train in Balasore, Odisha state, eastern India, June 2, 6.
Odisha state secretary Pradeep Jena told AFP news agency that "the top priority right now is to rescue (passengers) and provide medical assistance to the injured".
Witnesses and officials told local media that the Coromandel Express passenger train and a freight train collided near Balasore, about 200 kilometers from the Odisha state capital Bhubaneswar.
According to Odisha Chief Secretary Pradeep Jena, a second passenger train was also involved in the incident, but the order of events has yet to be clearly determined.
Doctors and paramedics rushed to the place of the train accident.
A police official in Balasore told AFP that many of the injured were in serious condition, but details "are still unclear as rescue teams are at work and everyone is busy with rescue work".
SK Panda, a spokesman at Jena State Secretary in Odisha state, told AFP that casualties as well as the situation at the scene "remain unclear as this is a serious accident".
“We hope that the rescue work will continue until at least tomorrow morning. For our part, we have prepared all the major government and private hospitals from the accident site to the state capital to treat the injured,” Panda said.
The spokesman added that 75 ambulances were urgently dispatched to the site of the train collision and several buses were deployed to transport both injured passengers and survivors from the site.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he was "grieved by the train accident".
Meanwhile, Indian Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw arrived at the scene to assess the situation.
“Rescue teams have been mobilized from Bhubaneswar, Kolkata, the National Disaster Response Force, state government teams and the air force have also been mobilized. All necessary for rescue operations will be mobilized," Vaishnaw wrote on Twitter.
Local media reported images of a train carriage overturned along the tracks with what appeared to be survivors lying on it and locals trying to pull other victims to safety.
Railway accidents happen quite often in India. However, railway safety in the country has improved significantly in recent years thanks to new investments and major technological upgrades.
According to vtv.vn
