15 killed in train collision near Chennai, over 80 injured

Written By DNA Web Team | Updated: Sep 14, 2011, 03:53 AM IST

The stationary Arakkonam-Vellore passenger train was waiting for the green signal near Sitheri Station when the Electric Multiple Unit (EMU) running between Chennai Beach and Vellore rammed into it from behind.

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Chennai: In yet another major train accident, the Chennai Beach-Vellore EMU train rammed into Arakkonam-Katpadi passenger train from behind near Arakkonam junction, about 75 km from here on Tuesday.

Initial reports say, Train No. 187 Arakkonam-Vellore passenger was waiting for signal to move forward when the EMU rammed into it from behind at around 9.30 pm.

Fifteen people were feared killed and 80 other were critically injured in the rail accident. The injured were rushed to the Arakkonam government hospital.

Three bogies of the Arakkonam-Katpadi passenger train were thrown off the tracks as an impact of the accident.

There are possibilities that scores of passengers could have been trapped under the debris.

The Union Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi announced Rs 5 lakh compensation for the families of the victims. He announced Rs one lakh for the seriously injured and Rs 25,000 for the lesser injuries.

Two teams of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have been rushed to the accident site. Top railway officials from Southern zone were rushed to the accident spot. Medical, rescue and relief team reached the accident spot. Rescue and relief operations were on. Efforts are in full swing to free the trapped people. However, rescue and relief efforts were hit by darkness and heavy rains in the area.

Train traffic on the busy Chennai-Katpadi section has been disrupted and several trains leaving Chennai Central have been affected.

PTI adds:

Additional Division Railway Manager in Chennai Usha Venugopal said seven bodies have been recovered from the five mangled bogies which were thrown off the track following the incident at around 9.40 pm.

In Delhi, Railway Board Chairman Vinay Mittal said 85 persons have been injured and the casualty figure could go up.

Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi announced exgratia of Rs 5 lakh to the next of the kin of the dead, Rs 1 lakh for those grievously injured and Rs 25,000 for those who suffered simple injuries.

He said the cause of the accident could not be ascertained immediately. Mittal said according to preliminary report it could be a human error.

Trivedi said the signal was red when the collision took place. The driver of the EMU A Rajkumar is among the injured. His breath analysis was negative for alchohol.

Trivedi said he along with the Minister of State for Railways KH Muniappa, Mittal and other senior officials would reach the accident site tomorrow.

Four other bogies of the two trains were also affected.

The staionary Arakkonam-Vellore passenger train was waiting for the green signal near Sitheri Station when the Electric Multiple Unit (EMU) running between Chennai Beach and Vellore rammed into it from behind.

A railway spokesperson the injured people were admitted to various government hospitals in Arakkonam and Vellore.

Rescue workers used gas cutters to help pull out the trapped passengers from inside the derailed bogies.

Relief trains and two teams of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have been rushed to the accident site.

However, rescue and relief efforts were hampered by heavy rains and darkness in the area.

Train traffic on the busy Chennai-Katpadi section was disrupted and several trains leaving Chennai Central affected.

Several trains, including Coimbatore-bound Cheran Express, were cancelled, officials said.

On July 10, 70 people were killed when the Howrah-Kalka Mail derailed near Kanpur and three weeks later some coaches of the Guwahati-Bangalore Express derailed in Malda district of West Bengal and were hit by another train leaving three persons dead.