Monday 30 July 2012

Fire on Tamil Nadu Express; 32 dead, several injured

Coach S-11 of the Chennai-bound Tamil Nadu Express caught fire early this morning, near Nellore in Andhra Pradesh; 32 people have died and 18 have been injured.

The injured have been taken to the Nellore civic hospital.

The fire has been doused and the coach has been detached from the rest of the train. No other coach was affected. But S-11 is so badly burnt that there is nothing but metal frames left inside it. Bodies are charred beyond recognition and identification will be difficult. The number of dead is an estimate - the toll could go up, say authorities.

Post-mortem on the bodies recovered will be held at the Nellore station today. A special train has left Chennai for the relatives of victims and those injured. It is expected to reach Nellore by 1 pm.

The fire started due to a short circuit near a toilet of the coach at about 4:28 am. The coach, that seats 72, was full. There were 17 people in the coach from Delhi, 11 from Bhopal, 11 from Warangal and 28 from Vijayawada.

Twenty six passengers were rescued from the coach which was completely gutted, Nellore District Collector B Sridhar said.

"The fire spread fast and the passengers could not come out through one of the doors because of the fire. So the other edge of the coach was to be used. Some people could come out and others succumbed to death," the Collector said.

Early reports said the doors of the coach were jammed and so many people could not escape as the fire spread. Some were asphyxiated, fell unconscious and were burnt to death. Among those who did was a mother who in death still clutched her little baby.

"There was a short circuit near the toilet and the train was moving at a speed of 110 km per hour. It was going to Chennai from Delhi. All the passengers were asleep when the fire broke out. People were not able to come out immediately," Mr Sridhar said.

In the morning, an alert deputy station master spotted the fire as the train passed Nellore station; it did not have a halt there. The train was stopped and passengers were evacuated immediately.

Railway Minister Mukul Roy has announced an ex-gratia payment of Rs. five lakh each to next of kin of deceased.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy has expressed shock and anguish at the fire accident. Mr Reddy has left for Nellore and is expected to reach by 1.30 pm to take stock of the situation.

Helpline numbers:

Secunderabad: 040-27786723, 27700868; Vijayawada: 0866-2345863, 2345864 and Nellore: 0861-2331477, 2576924; New Delhi: 011-23342954, 23341072, 23341074; Hazrat Nizamuddin: 011-24359748

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