“It’s rebirth”. This was how R Ramamurthy reacted after surviving the mishap (with his family of five) when the B1 bogie of Bangalore-Nanded Express train caught fire near Ananthapur district in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh on Saturday.
Ramamurthy and family (seats 25, 28, 41 to 44) were among the 72 passengers travelling the train, a bogie of which caught fire resulting in the death of 26 passengers, arrived in the city on Saturday night. They are residents of No 1318/1, third cross, Krishnamurthypuram, near Ballal Circle in the city.
Vijaya, Ramamurthy’s wife who has suffered head injuries has been kept under observation at the railway hospital in Yadavagiri in the city, while Ramamurthy was treated for respiratory problems, if any, for inhaling smoke during the mishap. The couple’s younger son Amith was treated for the cut on his left finger in his attempt to break the glass of the toilet in the melee.
Dr Shobha Jagannath who was in-charge of the casualty told Deccan Herald that Vijaya has to be kept under observation for the complaints of giddiness. The doctor said that all of them were however stable.
Ramamurthy told Deccan Herald that it was the wish of his elder daughter-in-law Sunitha (wife of R Anil) to visit the abode of Lord Raghavendra in Manthralaya. To fulfil the wish, the family left for Bangalore in a car on Friday and boarded the train around 10.30 pm.
Recalling the horrific moment, Ramamurthy said that he woke up around 3.30 am to the screams of his wife. The hazy compartment with the smoke engulfing the area and flame near the bed he was sleeping in, made Ramamurthy sense danger. While his wife ran towards the door, he woke his other family members and ran against the direction of the flame and alighted the train immediately.
For over two hours the family searched for Vijaya, who had gone missing by then -- giving description of her dress (blue saree), to whoever they came across. Finally, their efforts yielded results when a person informed them about a woman in an unconscious state being wheeled into the ambulance.
Ramamurthy said his wife jumped from the moving train along with several others, only to suffer injuries. She has sustained head injuries, besides injuries in waist and other body parts. After administering first aid at Dharmavaram, she was shifted to the district hospital in Ananthapur where she underwent further tests. She was later brought to Mysore in an ambulance.