Bhubaneshwar: Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said today that the cause of the catastrophic triple tain collision in Odisha’s Balasore has been identified. As he reviewed the accident site that claimed 288 lives, he said that the collision happened due to a change in electronic interlocking. Preliminary probe implies human errors, he further added.
Shalimar-Chennai Central Coromandel Express on its way to Chennai collided with the derailed coaches of Begaluru-Howrah Superfast Express and the its derailed coaches then hit the goods train. While many feared trapped, fifteen coaches of Coromandel Express came off the tracks, while two of the other train got derailed. The crash saw one train ram so hard into the other that carriages were lifted high into the air, twisting and then smashing off the tracks. Meanwhile, another carriage had been tossed entirely onto its roof crushing the passenger section.
A NDRF jawan travelling on the Coromandel Express who was on leave was perhaps the first person to alert emergency services before he joined initial rescue efforts.
Earlier on Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the train accident site in Odisha’s Balore and said those responsible shall be severely punished. The Indian government is standing with those who lost their family members in the tragic incident as he landed in an Air Force chopper near the site of accident, 170 km from Bhubaneshwar. PM Modi inspected the site with fellow cabinet colleagues; Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
Meanwhile, former railway minister also said that an anti-collision device in the trains could have averted the tragedy. CM Banerjee and Railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw also announced a compensation of Rs. 5 lakhs for the victims of the tragedy.