AP-Odisha Train Derails: 32 Dead, 100s Injured

More than 32 people were killed and 100s more were injured after nine coaches of the Jagdalpur-Bhubaneswar Express derailed while travelling at top speeds near Kuneru station in the Vizianagaram district of Andhra Pradesh on late Saturday night. The death toll and the number of injured are expected to go up.

The mishap took place at around 11 pm on Saturday, when the train was on its way to Bhubaneswar in Odisha from Jagdalpur in Andhra Pradesh.

As per reports, the engine and nine coaches of the 18448 Jagdalpur-Bhubaneswar Express derailed near Kuneru station. Besides the engine, the luggage van, two general coaches, two sleeper coaches, one AC three-tier and an AC two-tier coaches were derailed. More than 32 passengers were killed and 100s were injured. The injured have been shifted to hospitals at Parvatipuram and Rayagada.

A team of health, fire, police, disaster and forensics personnel reached the accident site and launched rescue operations. An investigation has been launched and the tracks are being inspected. Services have been affected on the Rayagada-Vijayanagaram route and several trains diverted. The East Coast Railway Tweeted that five buses had been arranged to carry the stranded train passengers towards Brahmapur, Palasa and Vizianagaram, free of cost.

The Railways, in a Tweet, said that the Union Railway Minister was personally monitoring the situation and had directed senior officials to ensure prompt rescue and relief ops.

Several helpline numbers have been opened at Rayagada and Vizianagaram:

1. Rayagada

a. BSNL landline numbers:

068562-23400; 068562-23500

b. BSNL mobile:

94397-41181; 94397-41071

c. AIRTEL mobile:

76818-78777

2. Vizianagaram:

a. Railway hotline numbers:

83331; 83332; 83333; 83334

b. BSNL landline numbers:

89222-21202; 89222-21206