Odisha train tragedy: Eyewitnesses recount how Coromandel Express crashed

Coromandel Express struck the derailed bogies of another passenger train and then a freight train on Friday (June 2, 2023) evening near Bahanaga Bazar railway station near Balasore in Odisha, resulting in over 230 fatalities and more than 900 passengers suffering injuries. Some bogies of 12864 Bengaluru-Howrah train travelling to Howrah in West Bengal suffered derailment at Bahanaga Bazar station in Balasore district of Odisha and fell on adjacent tracks. The 12841 Shalimar-Chennai Central Coromandel Express was running on the track on which the bogies had fallen and it crashed into them at around 7 pm on Friday and then hit a goods train too.

Eyewitnesses Account

The massive crash and pile up of derailed bogies were a scene of death and destruction with hundreds of people either killed or injured. An eyewitness stated, “I was a bit sleepy, so I was sleeping when the train overturned. After the train derailed, I woke up and then 10-15 people fell on top of me. I was stuck under them. I am feeling a lot of pain in my hand, and on the back of my neck.”

Another eyewitness, who was in the train, said, “I went to the washroom and when I came out, I saw that the whole train was tilted and I could not balance myself. I felt like I would fall. Everyone had fallen and many of them were piled up on top of each other. I could not understand anything and my mind stopped working. We came out (from the train) and now we are going to Cuttack by road.”

One of the passengers of the Coromandel Express helped in the rescue effort before he was taken to hospital for treatment. “I boarded Coromandel Express at 6:40 pm from Baleshwar (Balasore) and a few minutes later I heard some sound. Then I saw that the train had overturned and there had been an accident. When the train stopped, I came out and  then I rescued three or four people. Then one man brought me down, gave me some water and made me sit in the vehicle. He then took me for medical treatment.”

The derailed coaches of the Coromandel Express, which runs from Shalimar in West Bengal to Tamil Nadu’s capital Chennai, still have a large number of people trapped and the rescue operations are underway.

Compensation Announced

Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw also announced compensation for the bereaved/injured which is as follows:

₹10 Lakh in case of death 

₹2 Lakh towards grievous injuries

₹50,000 for minor injuries

While talking to ANI, Vaishnaw stated, “I have given out an order to conduct a high-level probe to find out why this accident happened…it is important to get to the root cause.”

According to an Indian Railways statement, a Self Propelled Accident Relief Medical Van (SPARME which is a mobile medical unit of the Indian railways deployed during an accident), Self Propelled Accident Relief Train (SPART) and an accident relief train were dispatched from Kharagpur, Balasore, and Santragachi to the accident site. Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised an ex-gratia from the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund (PMNRF) of Rs 50,000 for the injured and Rs 2 lakh for each deceased person's next of kin.

Helpline Numbers

A National Disaster Relief Force team along with Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) is also helping with the rescue and relief work. Railway authorities have issued the emergency control room number which is: +91 6782262286. Help desks have been opened at Shalimar, Howrah, Kharagpur, Balasore and several other cities. Their numbers are as follows:

• Howrah (HWH) - 033-26382217
• Kharagpur (KGP)- 8972073925, 9332392339
• Balasore (BLS) - 8249591559, 7978418322
• Shalimar (SHM) - 9903370746
• Chennai - 044-25330952
• Odisha government helpline 06782-262286
• Bhadrak - 8455889900
• Jajpur Keonjhar Road - 8455889906
• Cuttack - 8455889917
• Bhubaneswar - 8455889922
• Khurda Road - 6370108046
• Brahmapur - 89173887241
• Balugaon - 9937732169
• Palasa - 8978881006