Two passenger trains in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh have derailed within minutes of each other, causing an unknown number of casualties, officials say.
Several coaches from both trains are reported to have fallen into a swollen river near the railway line.
One of the trains was on its way to Mumbai, while the other was travelling in the opposite direction.
Rescue workers and local people have rushed to the scene of the accident.
The Press Trust of India reported that it was not clear how many passengers the trains had been carrying or whether there were any deaths.
It quoted a railways official as saying some casualties were feared since the river below the bridge crossing is fuller than usual due to recent rainfall.
The NDTV station reported that 300 people have so far been rescued from the Harda crash site. It said the accident may have been caused because heavy rain had damaged the bridge, which in turn led to the derailment.
Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu tweeted: "Rushing emergency medical and other relief personnel to spot. Darkness, water creating hurdles but ordered all possible help. Trying our best."
Safety standards on India's massive state-run railway network, which operates 9,000 passenger trains and carries some 23 million passengers every day, has been an ongoing concern amid a spate of accidents.
Last July at least 18 children were killed along with their driver when a school bus was hit by a train in the state of Telangana.
No comments:
Post a Comment