In the Indian town of Raghunathpur, a train derailed, leaving four people dead and thirty injured. The first responders were the villagers, who offered assistance and support.
On Wednesday night, even though it was late, Ramgobind (42) and Shyam Lal (48) were watering the crops in their fields that bordered Raghunathpur village. They heard an explosion at 9:50 p.m. and saw sparks fly over the sky. They initially believed it to be a lightning strike and were terrified. However, the rain never came, and the sparks continued to fly. When they arrived at the Raghunathpur railway station, which was in the direction of the sound, they were met with a damaged train.
Almost the whole train had fallen, and all we could hear were cries. There were so many sparks that they could be seen from a distance because the electric wires had broken. We called the village volunteer organization Gram Raksha Dal since we were unsure of what to do, and they came with whatever they could find, according to Ramgobind.
Ramgobind and Shyam Lal were among the first to arrive at the scene of the North East Express bogies’ derailment, which resulted in at least 30 injuries and four fatalities.
As word got out, more and more residents of the surrounding villages came forward to provide assistance. While some had ladders, ropes, and lamps, others only had water. It took the government rescue crews an hour and a half to arrive. The darkness made things challenging. We attempted to assist individuals in emerging from the bogies, a few of which were entirely slanted. Everyone was disoriented and in a trance, and there were kids inside. Shyam Lal stated, “Some people who were not hurt joined us in aiding others.
“Villagers from Kaithi, Rajpur, Baswar, and Pokhraha all reached the spot, carried injured passengers on their bikes, and rushed to a nearby community health center,” stated Dhiraj Kumar, headmaster of an improved high school in Raghunathpur. According to him, the accident occurred at 9:51 p.m., and the superintendent of police, the district magistrate, and the local police all responded within an hour.
Kartik Yadav from Satna in Madhya Pradesh reported that there was some anticipation of the catastrophe but that the majority of the passengers were either asleep or getting ready to sleep. Before the train came to an end, there were jerks on board for ten or fifteen minutes. Many of them toppled over from their berths due to their strength. It was evident that there was an accident when it stopped. Many were buried behind bags, and the lights went out. Dark and scary, he said.
“Everything inside the bogies – slippers, toys, edible items, cold drinks – were all thrown around,” stated a different uninjured traveler. There was fear as people sought to flee as the train jolted and wobbled. We were terrified of what might occur next, such as a fire.
( Also Read: Bihar government releases caste survey, puts OBC at 63%, general at 15.52. )
