AP train collision: Death toll rises to 14, rescue operations underway

Vishakhapatnam: Fourteen passengers were killed and 50 injured after a passenger train reportedly overshot the red signal and collided with a stationary train between Kantakapalli and Alamanda in Vizianagaram district of Andhra Pradesh, about 90 km from Visakhapatnam on Sunday.

Sources said the condition of the five injured is critical. The injured are being admitted to the government general hospital in Vizianagaram and to King George Hospital in Visakhapatnam.

Railway officials said that Train 08504 Visakhapatnam-Rayagada passenger train reportedly overshot the signal and rammed into the 08532 Visakhapatnam-Palasa passenger train.

Waltair Division officials said rescue and relief operation is in full swing and all the stranded passengers were shifted by buses and other means of transport. They said 11 coaches of the 08532 Visakhapatnam - Palasa train were taken to the Alamanda station while nine coaches of the 08504 Visakhapatnam - Rayagada train were pulled back to the Kantakapalle station.

Vizianagaram district officials said there was a delay in shifting injured people to hospitals due to which many injured lost their lives. It took nearly an hour for the railway officials, ambulances, and relief train to reach the spot, which is 40 km away from Visakhapatnam.

“Bogies derailed after a train travelling along with passengers from Vizianagaram to Rayagada hit a passenger train travelling on the same route from Visakhapatnam to Palasa,” a Waltair division official said.

The East Coast Railway chief public relations officer said that the Rayagada passenger had overshot the signal, according to PTI. He said two bogies of one train and the engine of the other had derailed. Other reports said five bogies had derailed.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's office posted on X (Twitter): “PM Modi spoke to railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and took stock of the situation.”

“Authorities are providing all possible assistance to those affected. The Prime Minister extends condolences to the bereaved families and prays that the injured recover soon.”

Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy issued orders to launch immediate relief measures and send as many ambulances as possible from Visakhapatnam and the nearest districts of Vizianagaram to the scene. All necessary arrangements must be made in nearby hospitals to ensure good medical care for the injured.

The Chief Minister directed railway authorities to coordinate with other government departments, including health, police and revenue to take quick relief measures and ensure that the injured receive prompt medical services.

AP education minister Botsa Satyanarayana reached the spot and interacted with the railway officials on the rescue operations.

Regional coordinator Y.V. Subba Reddy and Vizag MP M.V.V. Satyanarayana also made inquiries into the incident.

PTI reported Dr S. Appala Naidu, in-charge superintendent of the Government General Hospital at Vizianagaram, as saying: “Ambulances have been sent to the accident site. As of now we have received 20 injured people, out of which, three are serious. More ambulances are on the way and the number of injured persons might increase.”

Dr Naidu added, “We haven’t received any bodies in the hospital as of now. However, there are reports of the death of some passengers.”

Biswajit Sahoo, chief public relations officer of East Coast Railway (ECoR), informed that a special relief train was sent from Rayagada. He said rescue operations were underway and the divisional railway manager Saurabh Prasad of Waltair and his team had rushed to the spot. Accident relief trains and rescue and salvage equipment had been engaged, the official said.

East Coast Railway said it has set up helplines. Local administration and the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) were informed, the official said.

Railway minister Ashiwni Vaishnaw posted on his X handle about the rescue operations being carried out at the accident spot. “All passengers shifted. Prime Minister Narendra Modi reviewed the situation. Spoke to the CM of Andhra Pradesh, state government and railway teams are working in close coordination,” Vaishnaw wrote.

The Prime Minister announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF) for the next of kin of each of the deceased. The injured would be given Rs 50,000.