Nizamuddin-Ernakulam Lakshadeep Mangala Express derails: 3 dead, 37 injured

Kochi: Three passengers were killed and 37 others including 3 Malaylis injured when ten coaches of Nizamuddin-Ernakulam Lakshadeep Mangala Express train derailed at Ghoti near Igatpuri in Nashik district on Friday.l

The mishap took place at around 6.20 a.m when the train was passing through the Ghoti-Igatpuri section, about 35 kms from Nashik, a spokesperson of the Central Railway (CR) said in Mumbai.

While three passengers were killed in the mishap, 37 others sustained injuries and have been admitted to different hospitals, railway sources said. Two of the deceased have been identified as - Rahul Kushwaha (31) from Aligarh and Satbir Singh from Haryana.

The body of another deceased passenger was trapped between two derailed coaches and was yet to be extricated and identified, the sources said.

Seriously injured Malayalis were identified as Murali Kumar of Kannur, Muralidharan, pantry car employee, and N.K. Nidhin of Payyannur.

Satbir Singh, one of the dead, is a soldier with the Defence Security Corps (DSC) at Kannur. He was coming back after leave.

“They are undergoing treatment at Gothi hospital. Over 40 suffered minor injuries and they were released after preliminary treatment. A special train carrying the stranded left the Igatpuri station near Nashik by 12.40 noon. It’s expected to reach Ernakulam by 5 p.m. on Saturday,”  Ernakulam Area Manager P.L. Ashok Kumar said.

The railways suspect the derailment occurred due to rail fracture. Since the rake is maintained in Ernakulam,  the senior divisional mechanical engineer Sudhevan has flown to the site. “My leg got trapped in the mangled coach. Most passengers got bruises in the  derailment of 10 coaches. The coaches S-10 and S-11 bore the brunt,” Muralidharan said.

“At least seven trains were cancelled and several others diverted. However,  they  don’t include any trains bound for  the state or from it,” Ashok Kumar  said.

A helping hand amidst wreckage

Krishna Kumar K.E. | DC

Kochi: The S-10 coach was lying over the mangled S-11 and the pantry car above that. This was the scene witnessed by K.Sudhakaran Nair, an AC mechanic who was  part of the crew of the ill-fated Mangala Express that derailed in Maharashtra early on Friday.

“The train had left Nashik by 6 a.m. By that time most of us were awake but still on our berths with the doors closed. The train was running at 60-70 kmph (usual speed). Soon after it negotiated a curve, I suddenly  was thrown out of the berth violently following a loud noise. Then, as I heard the screams of passengers I realised that it was a mishap as I gathered my wits,” said Ernakulam native Nair, speaking to DC over  phone from Igatpuri station.

He was travelling in one of the AC coaches that didn’t topple when the train derailed around 6.20 a.m. “As I got out of the train I could see the maximum damage happened to sleeper coaches 10 and 11 which toppled against one another. Several people were trapped and we rushed to help them though most of us had bruises,” Nair said.

However, the rescue work was made difficult as the mishap site was nearly two km from the nearest tarred road. “The locals rushed to the site and soon railway personnel too came with aid. Surprisingly,  the toll was only four though the site presented  a horrifying sight”.

By the time he reached the Igatpuri station after the rescue work, the special train carrying the stranded passengers had left for Ernakulam. “Now I’ll go back to the site, nearly five km away, to help the injured,” he said.