Goods trains collide in Orissa; 1 dead, 4 trapped

At least one person was killed and four others were trapped in the wreckage after two goods trains collided in Orissa's Keonjhar district early on Wednesday.

The mishap took place near Tangiriapala station between Keonjhar and Banspani when an iron ore-laden train proceeding from the district rammed into an empty goods train approaching from the opposite direction, railway officials said.

While the body of the driver of one of the trains was recovered, four others were trapped in the wreckage, Divisional Railway Manager (Khurda Road) S Garg said.

"The number of casualty may rise," Station House Officer Garg, sho supervised rescue and search operation at the spot, about 88 km from Keonjhar, said.

There were five persons including the drivers, he said, adding engines of the trains were badly damaged and gas cutters and other sophisticated equipment being used to extricate those trapped.

Ten wagons of the two goods trains jumped the tracks following the head-on collision, a senior official of East Coast Railway said.

Senior railway officials including DRM Garg, have rushed to the spot to supervise rescue and service restoration work which was under way with adequate lighting arrangement.

An inquiry by the Commissioner of Railway Safety has
been ordered to ascertain the circumstances and reasons that led to the collision, an ECoR spokesman said.

Following the mishap, the Inter-City Express trains between Puri and Banspani have been cancelled, he said.

However, there was little impact on rail traffic as the route is mostly used for goods trains to carry minerals.