JOIN USCleaner dies as train rams crane near Doddaballapur
The cleaner of an earthmover (JCB) was killed and its operator suffered grievous injuries, after the Jabalpur-Yeshwantpur Express rammed it at an unmanned level crossing near Doddaballapur in Bangalore Rural district, on Sunday afternoon.
The accident occurred at 1.05 pm at the unmanned level crossing (LC 33) near Oddarahalli railway station when the Jabalpur-Yeshwantpur Express (112194) was heading towards Bangalore.
The deceased has beenidentified as Naveen Kumar (28). The operator, Prakash (30) of Gulbarga, who suffered severe injuries is battling for his life at a private hospital in Yelahanka.
The guards of the train alerted their higher-ups about the accident, who sent an ambulance immediately.Naveen died on the way to the hospital, said the
police.
The police said that a diesel tank attached to a coach developed cracks after the accident, and over 500 litres of diesel spilled on to the ground. Immediate halting of the train by loco pilots avoided the possibility of a major mishap due to diesel leakage, police said. The railway authorities said that neither the passengers of the train nor the loco pilots were injured in the accident.
The accident did not cause any damage to the tracks.
Following the accident, movement of trains on the route was disrupted for more than three hours.
An engine was sent from Bangalore to bring the coaches to the City, as the train’s loco was completely damaged. Train services resumed on the stretch after the tracks were cleared, they said.
Passenger’s account
Kattam Reddy, a passenger on the train, narrated the accident to Deccan Herald: “The train was moving at an average speed due to an ongoing work on the tracks.
The loco pilot kept honking as he saw that the operator was riding the earthmover without noticing the train. There was a huge thud within seconds. It took sometime for us to realise that it was a collision,” he added.
He said that the train moved further for some distance and finally halted.