At least 50 dead, hundreds injured after trains derail in India

At least 50 people were killed in eastern India after two passenger trains derailed in an accident that also involved a head-on collision with a goods train, according to officials, while hundreds remained trapped in mangled train carriages.

At least 50 people were killed in eastern India after two passenger trains derailed in an accident that also involved a head-on collision with a goods train, according to officials, while hundreds remained trapped in mangled train carriages.

Sudhanshu Sarangi, the director general of the state’s fire services, said 400 people were injured in Friday’s accident in Odisha state’s Balasore district.

In an interview to broadcaster NDTV he said that they hope to “complete the rescue operation in the next two to three hours”.

Dattatraya Bhausaheb Shinde, the top administrator in Balasore, said at least 50 people were dead.

Pradeep Jena, Odisha’s top civil servant, told reporters, “There have been casualties, but since all are busy in rescue we have not yet counted the number, so I can’t officially confirm [the] exact number.”

“But yes, such a violent and tragic accident involving three trains — two passenger trains and one goods train — we cannot rule out fatalities. We are only praying to god that it should be minimum and throughout the night we will work,” Jena added.