Chennai: At least 19 people were injured on Friday evening when the Mysuru–Darbhanga Bagmati Express (Train No. 12578) collided with a stationary goods train at Kavaraippettai railway station in Tiruvallur district, near Chennai. The express train was traveling at 75 km/h when the incident occurred around 8:30 PM.
The collision caused approximately 13 coaches to derail, with two of them catching fire. Fortunately, there have been no reported fatalities.
The Ministry of Railways confirmed the incident on X, stating, “Rear-end collision at Kavaraippettai Railway Station around 20:30 hrs today in Chennai-Gudur section involving Train No. 12578 Mysuru–Darbhanga Bagmati Express and a goods train.”
Officials reported that the injured passengers have been hospitalized, with four individuals suffering severe injuries. Tiruvallur District Collector Dr. T Prabhushankar mentioned that 1,360 passengers were on board the train at the time of the accident.
Rescue operations were promptly initiated, with both national and state disaster response teams (NDRF and SDRF) and ambulances dispatched to the scene. The stranded passengers of the Mysuru–Darbhanga Bagmati Express were transferred to a special train on Saturday morning to continue their journey.
Rail services on this route are expected to resume by Saturday evening. The Railway authorities have also issued helpline numbers for affected passengers:
Chennai Division:
044 25354151
044 25330952
044 25330953
044 24354995
Samastipur:
06274-81029188
Darbhanga:
06272-8210335395
Deendayal Upadhyay Junction
7525039558