The incident occurred at 7 p.m. (local time) on June 2, when the Howrah Superfast Express, traveling from Bangalore to Howrah, West Bengal, collided with the Coromandel Express, traveling from Kolkata to Chennai. About 10 to 12 coaches of one train derailed and fell onto the adjacent railway line. A second passenger train traveling in the opposite direction hit the train, causing three coaches to derail. Indian Railways CEO Amitabh Sharma confirmed that in addition to the two passenger trains, a freight train parked at the scene was also involved in the accident.

Odisha Fire Service Director General Sudhanshu Sarangi said rescue operations were still underway and many people were seriously injured. The death toll is expected to rise as many people are still trapped in the wreckage. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has convened a meeting to assess the situation. The exact cause of the fatal accident is not yet clear, but some sources said it could be due to a signal fault.

Scene of the tragic accident in Odisha state, India. Photo: CNN

According to CNN, videos and images from the scene of the accident showed a horrific scene. Long rows of bodies lay next to overturned trains. The scene was a mess with pieces of metal and glass from windows, and passengers' belongings scattered inside the cars and around the area where the train crashed.

“I opened the door and saw the remains of a derailed train. We heard people screaming. Some people came to us with bloodied bodies and asked for help,” said Anshuman Purohi, a passenger who survived the accident.

Purohi also said that the scene before him was only part of the accident. “We couldn’t see ahead. The carriages were stacked on top of each other. Many people were thrown out of the carriages and thrown several meters away,” he said.

Rohit Raj, a 19-year-old man who was present at the accident, shared about the terrifying scene at that time: “I was sleeping when suddenly I heard a loud crash. There was smoke everywhere, we couldn’t see clearly. Everyone was screaming and then trying to escape from the train. The train in front of me was badly damaged. People were almost completely trapped. I saw many people piled on top of each other. My train was derailed, but luckily I escaped.”

Several other witnesses said they saw many injured people, including people who had lost arms, some who had lost both legs and arms, and some who had their faces disfigured.

A massive search and rescue operation is underway involving hundreds of firefighters and police. The National Disaster Response Force is also in the area. All hospitals in Balasore district, where the accident occurred, have been put on high alert. Hundreds of people queued outside a government hospital in Soro city, Odisha, on June 2 to donate blood.

The accident shocked India, a country where more than 13 million people travel by rail every day and 8 billion trips a year. Despite the Indian government’s efforts to improve rail safety, thousands of accidents occur each year on the world’s fourth-largest rail network, largely due to human error and outdated signalling equipment.

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