In yet another train mishap, the engine and nine coaches of Nagpur-Mumbai Duranto Express derailed between Asangaon and Vasind, 83 km from here, on Monday morning, following heavy rains and a massive landslide. However, none of the passengers sustained any injuries nor was there any causality in the mishap.
The mishap, which occurred at 6.36 am, blocked traffic in both the directions towards. The authorities attributed the mishap to a sudden landslip. “The driver did excellent job of applying emergency brakes. There are no injuries to passengers,” a Central Railway spokesperson said.
Following the train derailment, suburban services to Kasara and Asangaon were operated up to Titwala. Continuous announcements were made about the derailment and its adverse impact on the train services for the information of the passengers.
Incidentally, a few trains had passed the rail strip where the landslide took place. By applying emergency brakes, the driver of the train Virendrs Singh prevented what could have been a major mishap. What also helped matters were the linke Hofmann Busch (lHB) coaches (developed by linke-Hofmann-Busch of Germany) manufactured at Rail Coach Factory Kapurthala that reduced the impact of landslide on the train.
Considered to be “anti-telescopic” , the lHB coaches not get turned over or flip in case of a collision (chiefly head-on). These coaches are made of stainless steel and the interiors are made of aluminium that make them lighter as compared to conventional rakes.
Earlier, immediately after receiving information about the mishap, the authorities rushed an Accident Relief Train and a Medical van to the site for restoration. Senior officers, including CR General Manager DK Sharma, reached the site to supervise the restoration.
The stranded passengers were transported to Kalyan and Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus by buses and taxis with the coordination of State Government.
Following the mishap, at least 50 long-distance trains were diverted or cancelled/terminated at various places.
Tuesday’s was the third mishap that took place in the neighbourhood of Mumbai and the fifth railway mishap across the country.
Earlier, three passengers were injured when a huge boulder came crashing down one of the compartments of the 17317 Hubballi — lokmanya Tilak Terminus Express at the Monkey Hill ghat section at lonavla, near Pune, on August 21. In three other mishaps, 23 passengers were killed and 150 others injured when Utkal Express at Khatauli near Muzzafarnagar in Uttar Pradesh on August 18, while 75 passengers were injured when New Delhi-bound Kaifiyat Express from — Azamgarh to New Delhi, derailed in Auraiya district of Uttar Pradesh on August 23. Five commuters were injured when four coaches of a Mumbai local train derailed at Mahim in sout-central Mumbai on August 25.