A Chennai-bound express train derailed on Saturday in Odisha’s Balasore district after hit an electric pole, officials said on the day.
According to South Eastern Railway (SER) Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) Om Prakash Charan, no reports of casualties have been received so far.
The accident occurred near Sabira, close to the Soro railway station in the Balasore district. New Jalpaiguri-Chennai Express was coming from Kolkata when collided with an electric pole during track-laying work, causing the battery to fall.
According to reports quoting the South Eastern Railway CPRO, there was an issue with the locomotive.
The matter is being investigated, he said.
According to news agency IANS, the derailment left hundreds of people waiting as the train repairs were underway.
Visuals from the accident spot showed scores of people gathered around each side of the train.
Second derailment in two days
On Friday night, three wagons of a goods train, en route to Raipur, were derailed at the Titilagarh yard in Odisha.
The incident, which occurred near the railway station at around 8:30 pm on Friday, saw no casualties.
“Red mud was loaded in these wagons and was being taken to a cement plant. Three wagons derailed while leaving from Line 8… The main line was immediately restored… All portions except three wagons of this goods train have been removed from the track…,” said Sambalpur Divisional Railway Manager (DRM) Tusharkanta Pandey said while briefing about the incident.
The Sambalpur DRM reached the site along with officials from the East Coast Railways arrived at the scene to investigate the situation and work on restoring the wagons.
Balasore train tragedy
Saturday’s train derailment rekindled the memories of the 2023 accident in Balasore that claimed 296 lives.
On June 2, 2023, three trains collided with each other, leaving nearly 300 people dead and over 1,200 injured.
Tragedy unfolded as Coromandel Express crashed into a stationary freight train near Bahanaga Bazar station in Balasore. Soon after, some of the derailed coaches, which fell on the tracks, collided with a galloping Yeshwantpur-Howrah Express.
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