Odisha train accident: More than 200 dead, 900 injured

One of the deadliest incidents since independence involved a train catastrophe in Odisha on Friday (02 June) that involved the Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express, the Shalimar-Chennai Central Coromandel Express, and a cargo train.

At least 238 people were killed and more than 650 were injured. Due to the wreckage, even a fleet of 115 ambulances and 50 buses struggled to transport injured passengers to hospitals from the scene of the disaster at Bahanaga railway station on Friday (02 June).

Passengers were being treated outside the district headquarters hospital in Balasore as hospitals appeared overburdened. Numerous injured people were also transported quickly to the Bhadrak district.

The local governments and government organizations relocated 600–700 people for the operation. However, the lack of ambulances meant that the government had to send buses and other vehicles to aid transport the injured to hospitals.

On Saturday (03 June), Prime Minister Narendra Modi will travel to Balasore in Odisha, the scene of a terrible railway accident that killed close to 300 people and injured over 900 more.

The prime minister will visit the scene of the train disaster first, and then he will go to the Cuttack hospital, where the injured have been admitted, according to the specifics.

The rescue efforts at the accident scene, according to the railways, have ended.

The train disaster occurred near the Bahanaga Baazar station in the Balasore district, roughly 250 kilometers south of Kolkata and 170 kilometers north of Bhubaneswar, around 7 p.m. (local time) on Friday (02 June), prompting the Railway Ministry to conduct an investigation.

According to a statement from the Indian Railways, AM Chowdhary, Commissioner of Railway Safety, South East Circle, will be in charge of the investigation into the train accident. The Ministry of Civil Aviation is responsible for the Commissioner of Railway Safety.