The derailment in Tamil Nadu's Tiruvallur district occurred when a passenger train, traveling at 75 km per hour, collided with a stationary goods train. RN Singh, General Manager of Southern Railways, told NDTV that the accident was due to a "mismatch between signal and route."
The Mysuru-Darbhanga Bagmati Express was supposed to switch to the main line, but "something wrong happened," Singh explained. Instead, the train was mistakenly diverted to a closed section of the track where the goods train was parked.
Singh emphasized that it is still too early to determine the exact cause but noted that although the signal had been set for the main line, the track switched the train onto the closed loop. "The train was headed to Gudur (in Andhra Pradesh) and had stopped at Kavaraippettai Railway Station in Tiruvallur, where a goods train also headed to Gudur was on the loop line."
"It (the express) was given priority and was supposed to pass through the main line," Singh continued, "but despite the signal clearance, the passenger train entered the loop line and hit the goods train from behind, leading to the engine derailment."
Officials mentioned that the passenger train reported a 'heavy jerk' before entering the loop line. The Railway Safety Commissioner will investigate to determine the precise reasons behind the incident.
The collision caused 12 coaches to derail and left 19 people injured, though fortunately, no fatalities have been reported. The injured are receiving treatment at state-run hospitals, while the remaining passengers, over 1,300 in total, were transported by bus to Chennai and accommodated on a special train to continue their journey.
The derailment occurred about 40 km from Chennai, resulting in the cancellation or diversion of several trains. At least 18 scheduled trains have been canceled for the day due to ongoing repair work.
A high-level inquiry has been initiated, and Chief Minister MK Stalin expressed his shock, urging for swift rescue operations. Officials have stated that full restoration could take up to 24 hours, potentially lasting until Saturday evening.
