Emergency helpline numbers have been made available by ECoR at 8455889905 (Korai station), 0674-2534027 (Bhubaneswar), and 0674-2492245 (Khurda Road). Roop Narayan Sunkar, general manager of the ECoR, and other senior officials have rushed to the area to oversee rescue operations.
Digital Desk: At least three people were killed and seven others were injured after a freight train derailed at Korai railway station in Odisha's Jajpur district on Monday morning, reports said.
According to officials of East Coast Railway (ECoR), the tragedy happened at around 6.44 am while some persons were waiting at the platform for a passenger train.
According to station employees, the loco pilot of the empty goods train that was travelling from Dongoaposi to Chhatrapur suddenly pressed the brakes, forcing eight waggons to derail and crash into the waiting room and platform's passengers.
The rescue operation is being monitored by Jajpur Additional District Magistrate Akshay Kumar Mallick, who said that several derailed waggons climbed the foot-over-bridge and fell on the waiting area and ticket window.
Two women are among the three victims, he claimed.
A two-and-a-half-year-old child who was with the two women, who were mother and daughter, miraculously survived, according to the man who lost his wife and daughter.
According to a senior police officer, there may be more individuals trapped beneath the debris. According to railway officials, there may be more fatalities because some people have suffered significant injuries. They also noted that the station building was harmed in the accident.
Derailed waggons were seen strewn over both platforms in social media videos, their axles lying on the tracks.
Some lorries were spotted wrecking the foot-over-entry, bridge's while others tore down the railway station's buildings and smashed up the overhead power lines.
Locals were spotted assisting rescue teams in removing the debris and searching beneath it for deaths and injured people.
The Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF), the fire services, and people are also involved in the rescue efforts in addition to the railways, an official added.
While this is going on, the compensation for the victims' families has been increased to 5 lakh, 1 lakh for those who were gravely hurt, and 25,000 for those who just suffered minor injuries, according to Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.
"The loss of life in the Korai train tragedy breaks my heart. Announcing that the families of the deceased will receive financial aid in the amount of Rs. 5 lakh, Rs. 1 lakh, and Rs. 25,000, respectively, and "he tweeted in Odia.
The chief minister, Naveen Patnaik, offered his sincere sympathies and declared that the injured will receive free medical care as well as a compensation of 2 lakh for their families. Mr. Patnaik requested that Minister of Revenue and Disaster Management Pramilla Mallick visit the area and assess the situation.
Both lines were shut down as a result of the accident, which had an impact on train operations between Howrah and Chennai.
According to chief public relations officer Biswajit Sahu, ECoR has short-terminated five trains, cancelled eight others, and diverted 12 more.
A medical team and an accident relief train have been dispatched to the area, he added.
Several train stations, including Bhubaneswar and Puri, were stranded with hundreds of passengers. Some of them were waiting to catch their trains after having already checked out of their hotels.
Emergency helplines are available at 8455889905 (Korai station), 0674-2534027 (Bhubaneswar), and 0674-2492245 (ECoR) (Khurda Road). Senior officials, including ECoR General Manager Roop Narayan Sunkar, have rushed to the site to supervise rescue operations.
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