'Within Seconds Several Were Dead, Cries For Help Everywhere': Odisha Train Accident Survivor

A Coromandel Express passenger recalled the incident and said that such a situation brings out the worst in you.

Following an accident involving the Coromandel Express, the Bengaluru-Howrah Express, and a goods train, a rescue operation is underway. ( Image Source :PTI )

A passenger on board the Coromandel Express, which was involved in a horrific accident in Odisha's Balasore on Friday, recalls the moment and says that such a situation brings out the worst in you. Speaking to ANI about the incident, a survivor named Anubhav Das, a resident of Cuttack, said that he is a PhD student who was returning to Cuttack from Kolkata and was in the last coach of the train, so he was not affected by the derailment.

He stated that at the time of the incident, the Coromandel Express was travelling at about 110-115 kmph and was moving smoothly when the accident occurred. "Within a span of 30-40 seconds, we see so many people injured, dead, and cries of help everywhere," the survivor said of the nervous minutes leading up to the derailment of coaches. "A situation like this brings out the scariest in you," he added. 

Meanwhile, the death toll from a three-train crash in Odisha's Balasore has risen to 288, according to Indian Railways.

Another train passenger recalled the horrific incident and what occurred inside the train during the accident on Friday. "I was sleeping at the time the train derailed. I noticed that there were about 10,15 people piled on top of me at the time. I am not sure about the numbers, but when I was rescued from the train, I noticed that some people had lost their legs, hands, and some of them had their faces disfigured," a passenger was quoted by news agency ANI as saying in Hindi.

READ | 'Could See Disfigured Faces Of Corpses I Was Trapped Under': Coromandel Express Passenger Recalls Horror

Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the train crash site in Balasore, Odisha. Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan accompanied him. 

The Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express, the Coromandel Express, and a goods train collided on three separate tracks at Bahanaga Bazar Station in Odisha's Balasore district. 

According to the Special Relief Commissioner's office of the Odisha Government, 17 coaches of the two trains had derailed and were severely damaged.