Heartbreaking: 300 Lives Lost and 900 Injured in Train Tragedy

A devastating train collision in the eastern Indian state of Odisha has left a scene of immense destruction and tragedy. The crash occurred near Balasore, where debris from the wreckage was piled high, with carriages thrown far from the tracks and some completely overturned.

The impact was so severe that train compartments were torn open, leaving blood-stained gaps in their sides.

Survivor Arjun Das recounted the terrifying moments to a Bengali television channel, describing how he heard a “thundering sound” before seeing passengers fall from their upper berths. In a panic, Das jumped out of the train amidst the chaos, with people screaming and calling for help around him. He described the aftermath as horrifying, with injured people lying everywhere inside the coaches and along the tracks, a sight he wishes he could forget.

The disaster unfolded when an express train traveling north from Bengaluru to Kolkata derailed and landed on an adjacent southbound track. Minutes later, the Coromandal Express, heading from Kolkata to Chennai, crashed into the wreckage, and some of its coaches collided with a goods train parked nearby. Anubhav Das, a researcher on the second train, shared that his coach stayed upright, and he was unhurt, but the scenes he witnessed were gruesome, with mangled bodies and injured passengers desperately trying to help one another.

Rescue operations continue as authorities search for survivors trapped in the wreckage. The death toll currently stands at 288 but is expected to rise, possibly approaching 380, according to Sudhanshu Sarangi, director general of Odisha Fire Services. Hospitals between the crash site and Bhubaneswar, around 200 kilometers away, are receiving the injured, with 200 ambulances and buses deployed for transportation.

This tragic accident ranks as one of India’s worst train disasters, following other significant rail tragedies over the years. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his distress over the accident and offered his condolences to the bereaved families while hoping for the quick recovery of the injured.