Nine people were killed and at least 40 injured when the Sealdah-bound Kanchanjunga Express from Agartala in West Bengal’s Darjeeling district, 11 km from New Jalpaiguri railway station, was rammed from behind by a goods train on Monday. The dead included seven passengers, the train driver of the Amingaon (Assam) – Jharsuguda (Odisha) goods train and another railway employee.
The force of the impact was so great that three rear coaches of the Kanchanjunga Express derailed between Rangapani and Chhatarhat stations in the Northeast Frontier Railway area. Rescue work began quickly but it took some time to free the trapped passengers as Siliguri was experiencing heavy rain since morning.
“The local people were very helpful,” said Abhishek Roy, Additional Superintendent of Police, Kurseong, at the accident site.
Mohammad Momirul, 32, was one of the first to rush to the accident site after hearing a loud noise. Many in his village were celebrating Eid al-Fitr and the celebrations were brought to an abrupt end when the collision occurred.
“The locomotive driver was trapped under a wheel of the passenger train. He was already dead. I regret that I could not save a man who died on my hand,” said Momirul. Around 150 people from Chotonirmal village were the first responders just behind the railway tracks. The accident on the main railway line from Kolkata to Siliguri also affected long-distance train services.
A local resident Md Hakim said, “I was on my way home after Eid prayers. Suddenly I heard a loud noise. I see that the goods train has collided with the Kanchenjunga train. We villagers are coming as soon as possible and trying to recover the body. Many people have been injured. 5-6 bodies have been recovered. The injured have been taken to the medical ward.”
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