Over 100 killed after train derails in India

At least 115 people have been killed and over 150 injured after a train derailed near the city of Kanpur in northern India.

Hundreds of people were trapped after 14 carriages of the express train, that was travelling between Patna and Indore, crumpled into another as they came off the tracks just after 3am local time on Sunday. The cause of the crash, that took place near the village of Pukhrayan, is not yet known but the Times of India quoted sources as saying that a fracture in the track could have been to blame.

“We woke with a jolt at around 3am,” survivor Krishna Keshav told the BBC. “Several coaches were derailed, everybody was in shock. I saw several bodies and injured people.”

By late Sunday afternoon, rescue workers were still using heavy machinery to try to reach survivors.

“We are using every tactic to save lives but it’s very difficult to cut the metal carriages,” senior railway official Pratap Rai told Reuters.

Passenger Ruby Gupta, 20, was travelling to the city of Azamgarh for her wedding when the train crashed.

“I cannot find my father and I have been looking everywhere for him,” she told NDTP. “Some people told me to look in hospitals and in morgues, but I am clueless as to what to do.”

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted: “Anguished beyond words on the loss of lives due to the derailing of the Patna-Indore express. My thoughts are with the bereaved families. Prayers with those injured in the tragic train accident.”

He said that he had spoken to Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu, who was “personally monitoring the situation closely”. On his own Twitter account, Prabhu warned that that the “strictest possible action will be taken against those who could be responsible for the accident”.

He said that an investigation into the crash would begin immediately and that compensation would be paid to injured passengers and to the relatives of the ones who died.