A train in northern India has derailed, killing at least 100 people and injuring dozens more, according to reports by senior local police officials.
The derailment of fourteen carriages took place shortly after 03:00 local time on Sunday (21:30 GMT Saturday) between the cities of Patna and Indore near Kanpur city.
The death toll in India’s northern Uttar Pradesh state following the derailment of the Indore-Patna Express has now surpassed 100, with more than 150 injured.
In emergency efforts overseen by India’s National Disaster Response Force, rescuers are still trying to remove the injured and retrieve the dead from the wreckage. Senior railway official Pratap Rai told Reuters: “We are using every tactic to save lives but it’s very difficult to cut the metal carriages.”
The cause of the crash is not yet known and is still under investigation.
One passenger whose carriage had not turned over in the accident told an AP reporter that the train had been going at a normal speed, then stopped suddenly and restarted shortly before crashing.
In response to news of the crash, Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu tweeted that the “strictest possible action will be taken against those who could be responsible for accident,” adding that an investigation into the crash would begin immediately and that compensation would be paid to “unfortunate passengers who died and to injured.”
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted: “Anguished beyond words on the loss of lives due to the derailing of the Patna-Indore express. My thoughts are with the bereaved families. Prayers with those injured in the tragic train accident.”
Kanpur is a major railway junction and hundreds of trains pass through it daily, while it is estimated that roughly 23 million passengers use the India’s vast railway network every day, the fourth largest in the world.
Sources: Sky News, BBC
