KADALUNDI TRAIN DISASTER

 KADALUNDI TRAIN DISASTER

 

Kadalundi train disaster is one of the biggest accidents on the Indian railway network in 2001 . On 22 June , the Mangalore - Chennai mail passenger train heading for Chennai was crossing Bridge 924 over the Kadalundi river near Kozhikode when four carriages derailed and fell into the river . The bridges is situated near Kadalundi Railway station in Kadalundi Gramapanchayat of Kozhikode district in the state of Kerala .

The death toll for the accident rose steadily as bodies were retrieved from the wreckage over the course of a week , but a figure of 57 people was eventually reported as killed or missing including at least eight women and two children , whilst between 117 and 300 were injured and transported to nearby hospitals . These figures were still challenged by some , who said the toll was higher and that a number of people were still missing .

 The monsoon rains had been very heavy that year , and some believe that this contributed to the problems on the bridge that caused one of the rails to break as the heavy train passed over them . The bridge was 140 years old and in a poor state of repair , and it shifted when the line broke , derailing the train . As it shifted four carriages from the rear , fell into the swollen river , two being submerged totally , and two others partially submerged .

                            

Rescue parties , totalling over 500 people from nearby towns , entered the river to rescue people from the wrecked carriages , and support was also received from fire brigades and the Indian Navy , Who sent fifty professional divers to attempt to rescue those trapped in the underwater railway cars . Railway officials and family members also arrived rapidly with the aid of a special train .

The enquiry into what actually caused the damage to the bridge was highly controversial , because government investigators concluded that one of the bridges pillars had sunk into the river , causing an uneven kink in the track , which snacked when the train hit it . Subsequent private investigations have seriously questioned this theory , pointing out that the bridge is damaged on top of the structure in a way which would not be possible if the pillar was unstable . these investigators claim that there was a fault with the train itself or it can be both together , for most of accidents  happen due to more than on cause ......

                                                                                                          


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