Kuneru train derailment

On January 21, 2017, the Hirakhand express 18448, a scheduled passenger train from Jagdalpur to Bhubaneswar, derailed near the village of Kuneru in Vizianagaram, Andhra Pradesh, India, killing 41 people and injuring 68 others. The train was carrying 600 passengers.[1]

Kuneru train derailment
Scheduled train route
Kuneru Station falls between RGDA–VZM.
Details
Date21 January 2017
11:00 p.m. local time
(16:30 UTC, 21 January)
LocationKuneru, Andhra Pradesh
Coordinates18°57′59″N 83°26′25″E
CountryIndia
LinePart of Jharsuguda–Vizianagaram line
OperatorEast Coast Railway zone
Incident typeDerailment
CauseUnder investigation
Statistics
Trains1
Passengers~600
Deaths41
Injured68

Accident

The diesel engine of the train and nine cars derailed on Saturday around 11 pm local time.[2] Three cars derailed with enough force to leave the roadbed entirely,[3] and some collided with a freight train on a parallel track.[4] According to a district fire department official, some of the casualties were a result of a stampede within the train as passengers tried to flee after the crash.[5] Emergency teams worked intensively to locate and rescue survivors from the crash, said the National railway spokesman Anil Saxena.[6]

Aftermath

The first rescue workers reached the location of the crash 40 minutes after the train derailed.[5] Rescue and recovery work continued until the next day, while repairs to the track were completed by the morning of 23 January.[3] Indian Railways said that it would pay ₹200,000 to the families of those killed in the crash and ₹50,000 to injured passengers,[5] while the government of Odisha announced that it planned to pay ₹500,000 to families of the dead.[7]

Investigation

According to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, investigation of the accident, in conjunction with India's Railway Safety Commissioner, started on January 22.[2] Director General of Police K.B. Singh said that there was no evidence of sabotage of the track involved, though unnamed railroad officials had initially hypothesized such.[2]

See also

References
  1. "Investigation into India Train Crash Launched as Death Toll Rises to 41". Time. 23 January 2017.
  2. "Jagdalpur-Bhubaneswar Hirakhand Express derails LIVE updates: 39 dead, Railways suspect sabotage; Suresh Prabhu meets victims' family". The Indian Express. New Delhi. 22 January 2017. Retrieved 22 January 2017.
  3. "At least 39 killed as Indian train derails". Reuters. 22 January 2017. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
  4. "Dozens killed after train derails in southern India". Al Jazeera. 22 January 2017. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
  5. "Train Derails in Southern India, Killing Dozens". The New York Times. 22 January 2017. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
  6. "India Andhra Pradesh train crash leaves 39 dead and scores injured". BBC News. 22 January 2017. Retrieved 25 January 2017.
  7. "Odisha announces ex-gratia relief to Hirakhand express derailment victims". One India. 22 January 2017. Retrieved 24 January 2017.
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