The death toll in the derailment of Delhi-bound Kalka Mail here on Sunday rose to 63 on Monday with rescuers pulling out 25 more bodies, including that of a Swedish national, from the mangled compartments of the ill-fated train.
The Fatehpur Superintendent of Police, Mr Ram Bharose, said 250 people were injured in the incident and that they were undergoing treatment at various hospitals in Fatehpur district in Uttar Pradesh and in Kanpur.
“63 bodies, including that of a Swedish national, have been recovered so far. About 250 are undergoing treatment at a hospital here,” he said.
He said the deceased Swedish national has been identified as Wick from the statement of his injured compatriot Mr Oscar, who was also travelling with him.
There is one more passenger from Sweden, who is reportedly missing, the SP said, quoting Mr Oscar.
The derailment took place at 12.20 PM yesterday when the packed train from Howrah reached near Malwa station, nearly 120 km from Lucknow. The train was moving at a speed of 108 km/hour.
Rescue operations continued throughout the night to extricate the trapped passengers and bodies from the damaged AC and other compartments.
“By tomorrow morning, the Howrah-Delhi route should be cleared off,” the Railway Board Chairman, Mr Vinay Mittal, said, adding that an inquiry by the Chief Commissioner of Railway Safety (Lucknow), Mr Prashant Kumar, has been ordered.
Mr Mittal said there was no fault in the track and the cabin man had told him that when the train was close to pole number 927/23, its engine started shaking and emitting smoke, soon after which the mishap took place.
Out of the 63 bodies, only 21 have been identified, Mr Bharose said.
According to preliminary investigations, the signals were functioning normally and the fish plates on the tracks were intact, Mr Mittal said.
While some of the bogies had toppled, others were turned into a mangled heap of metal. Gas cutters and other equipment were used to slice through the metal in the AC and other coaches to rescue the trapped passengers.