Chennai train crash in Trivedi at human error; 15 killed, 80 injured

Chennai, Sept 14 (IBNS) The death toll in Tuesday night's train collision in Tamil Nadu rose to nine, according to officials on Wednesday.

About 100 were injured in the train crash, officials said.
The accident occurred at around 9-30 pm at Arakkonam in Vellore district, which is about 80 km from state capital Chennai.

Arakkonam-Katpadi passenger train, which was stationary and waiting for green signal, was hit in the rear by Chennai Beach-Vellore EMU local, derailing at least five coaches of the former, reports said.

Deepak Krish, General Manager, Southern Railway, speaking to a TV channel said the driver of the EMU train had jumped several signals causing the accident.
All injured were taken to hospital and the rescue operation was complete by night even as clearing of the tracks and removal of the derailed bogies continued till morning on Wednesday, officials said.

Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi has headed for the accident site.

He earlier declared a compensation of Rs 5 lakh for the dead and Rs 1 lakh for those seriously injured. Rs 25,000 would be paid to those who suffered minor injuries.

"The cause of the accident cannot be immediately ascertained, but we will come to know what was the cause," Trivedi said, adding that one of the drivers was alive and being treated.

A train accident in July this year in Uttar Pradesh had killed more than 80 and injured around 350.

With a track network of 39,350 miles, Indian Railways is the country’s transportation lifeline, but disasters on the track occur at frequent intervals.
It is one of the world’s largest rail systems, transporting between 18 and 20 million people and more than 2 million tons of freight each day.

Helpline Numbers: 044-25357398, 044-25347771/ 09244919572