Odisha Train Accident: Over 40 Passengers Died Due To Electrocution, Says Reports

Bhubaneswar: While several bodies were disfigured beyond recognition, over 40 bodies retrieved from Coromandel Express, which was involved in Odisha’s triple train crash, had no visible injury marks.

These victims are suspected to have died of electrocution after the live overhead wires snapped and fell on the compartments during the collision between Howrah-Chennai Coromandel Express and Yeshwantpur (Bengaluru)-Howrah Express and a stationary goods train on June 2 evening, TOI reported quoting top officials.

The FIR registered at Balasore GRP station against unknown persons also attributed some deaths to electrocution. “Many passengers succumbed to the injuries caused due to the collision and electrocution coming in contact with overhead LT (low tension) line,” sub-inspector Papu Kumar Naik said in his complaint.

The Railways on Tuesday put the official death toll at 278 after three more passengers succumbed to injuries. A total of 1,100 were injured in the crash. The death figures of Odisha government at 275 remains unchanged.

Meanwhile, a 10-member Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) team visited Bahanaga railway station and started the investigation. They are being accompanied by a forensic team, sources said.