Odisha train accident: The horrific train crash involving three trains in Odisha’s Balasore brought the state’s medical system on its knees. Nearly 300 people were killed and 900 injured in the crash Friday evening in Balasore. Reports said 10 to 12 coaches of the Shalimar-Chennai Coromandel Express collided with a goods train and derailed on the opposite track. Subsequently, the Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express collided with the derailed coaches, leading to the derailment of three to four of its own coaches.
A deluge of crash victims at hospitals
Hospitals in Balasore were crumbling under a deluge of dead bodies and the injured. They was not prepared for this magnitude of accident . Dr Mrutunjay Mishra, Additional District Medical Officer (ADMO), Balasore district headquarters hospital said, “I have been in the profession for many decades. But I have never seen such chaos in my life. Almost all together, 251 accident victims were rushed to our hospital, and to be honest, we were not prepared. But our staff worked through the night and provided medical aid to all.”
Most of the injured were rushed to Balasore district hospital and government Soro hospital nearby. For hours medical staff were seen running to arrange for scarce supplies. They were trying to communicate with the injured passengers, many of whom didn’t speak either Oriya or Hindi. “Though it is a district headquarters hospital, the scale of the tragedy was too big to immediately handle. I can only imagine the state at the primary health centres, and the community health centres near the accident site where there are no more than two doctors,” Dr Mishra said. By noon on Saturday, 526 victims had already been admitted to the hospital.
Dr Subhajit Giri, medicine specialist at the district hospital said, “We had more than 500 trauma cases on a single day when we deal with 100 at the most on a heavy day. We had to requisition medical students to deal with the emerging crisis.”
Scramble to identify victims
Hospitals were swarming with relatives scrambling to identify the loved ones. It began early Saturday morning, and for many it was continuing late into the night.
Relatives of those missing in the crash, roamed the wards to check every bed. Politicians also visited various hospitals to interact with the injured.
“My only son is missing,” said Komlesh Sen, 44, who traveled hundreds of miles from Kolkata to Fakir Mohan Medical College and Hospital in Balasore. His 19-year-old Mihir was travelling in the train. The father didn’t know whether Mihir was alive or dead.
Bodies were piled up in the morgue in white shrouds. Mpst were yet to be identified. “With train services cancelled or delayed because of the accident on a major railway trunk route, getting to Balasore has been a problem,” an Odisha government official said.
Restoration work commences
Meanwhile, the rescue operation is over at the derailment site and restoration work has commenced, the Ministry of Railways said in a tweet.
“Around 900 injured passengers are being treated at several hospitals in Balasore, Mayurbhanj, Bhadrak, Jajpur and Cuttack districts,” Chief Secretary Pradeep Jena said.
“The identified bodies are either being handed over to their relatives or transported to their respective destinations after autopsy. Statutory procedure will be followed for the unidentified ones,” he added.
Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw reached the accident spot in Balasore Saturday morning and took stock of the situation.
High-level probe ordered
“A detailed high-level inquiry will be conducted and the rail safety commissioner will also do an independent inquiry, “Ashwini Vaishnaw said. The cause of the train accident in Odisha will be known after the Commissioner of Railway Safety submits his report, he said.
Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik also visited the site of the horrific site and took stock of the situation in Balasore. He also visited the Balasore district hospital to meet the injured victims.
“I have to thank the local people, local teams who have worked overnight. Railways safety should always be given the first preference. The people have been taken to hospital, ” the CM said.
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