On 13th February 2009, at least 16 passengers were killed and 161 others sustained grievous injuries when 13 bogies of the Chennai-bound Coromandel Express from Howrah derailed while changing tracks in Odisha’s Jajpur district. The day was then termed as a 'black' Friday.
Fourteen years later, again on a Friday night (June 2, 2023), the same express train derailed in Odisha killing over 200 people. Hundreds of passengers travelling in the Coromandel Express have died while over 800 persons have been critically injured in the horrific accident near Balasore's Bahanaga station in Odisha.
What Had Happened In 2009
As many as 13 bogies of the Coromandel Express, which was running at a high speed, derailed just after it crossed the Jajpur Road railway station and was changing the tracks. Of the 13 bogies that derailed, 11 were sleeper class and two general. While the engine of the train then went onto another track, the bogies derailed and got delinked from the train. One of the 13 bogies had mounted onto another. The accident had then occurred between 7:30pm and 7:40pm.
A massive operation was launched after the accident and medical teams and ambulances were mobilised from Jajpur and adjoining districts to rush the injured to hospitals. Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) teams also joined the rescue operation with high-tech equipment.
2 June 2023 Train Mishap in Odisha- What We Know So Far
It was a triple train crash on Friday evening and the trains involved were Shalimar-Chennai Central Coromandel Express, Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express and a goods train.
As per sources, Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express was on its way to Howrah when several coaches derailed and fell on the adjacent tracks.
Shalimar-Chennai Central Coromandel Express, on its way to Chennai, collided with the derailed coaches of the Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express.
The derailed coaches of the Coromandel Express then hit the wagons of a goods train.
Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has ordered to conduct a high-level probe to find out the reason behind the accident. "It is important to get to the root cause," said the Minister.
Vaishnaw also announced ex-gratia compensation to the victims of the train accident - Rs 10 lakh in case of death, Rs 2 lakh towards grievous and Rs 50,000 for minor injuries. PM Narendra Modi has announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh to the kin of deceased and Rs 50,000 to the injured from PMNRF.