An unfortunate fire accident occurred on Train No. 12622 New Delhi - Chennai Tamil Nadu Express near Nellore Railway Station on Vijayawada-Gudur Section of Vijayawada Division in the early hours at about04.20am today (30th July, 2012). The fire occurred in S-11 Coach, which is situated 5th from the rear of the train. The fire was noticed by Station Master, Nellore while it was passing through and the train was brought to a halt immediately between Nellore and Vedayapalem stations. The fire wasbrought under control by 05 20 hrs. The remaining coaches of the train were isolated and the unaffected portion of the train was run to Chennai. The burnt coach was cleared to Nellore Station. As per the latest information available, the rescue teams have retrieved 28 dead bodies( 19 Male, 6 Female and 3 Children) from the ill fatedS-11 Coach and in addition 4 more bodies in unrecognizable condition have also been recovered.
Normal train traffic on the Nellore-Gudur section was restoredand the trains regulated on the section started running by 07.45 hrs. Due to this accident, 6 Passengers trains have been fully cancelled and 4 passenger trains were partially cancelled.
South Central Railway undertookconcerted efforts with the active co-operation of the state government officials to organise immediate rescue and relief measuresPrompt relief measures were taken up to minimize loss of lives and to provide necessarymedical attention. A Medical Relief Van and Accident Relief Train were immediately rushed to the spot from Bitragunta, while the fire brigade from Nellore reached the spot by 04.40 Hrs and brought the fire under control by 05.20 Hrs.Railway officials from Vijayawada Divisionled by Divisional Railway Manager reached the accident site tooversee the rescue and relief operations.Sri G. N. Asthana, General Manager , South Central Railway and other Senior officials also proceeded to the spot by a special train from Secunderabad to monitor the situation.The District Collector and SP/ Nellore District and other local officials were amongst the first to reach the spot and join the rescue and relief efforts.
The Disaster Management Control Room of the Zone at Secunderabad was immediately activated and a team of Senior officers from various departments camped to constantly monitor the field situation and guide the relief operations. Information was disseminated on a continuous basis to the Media.
Help Lines were set up promptly - at Secunderabad, Vijayawada, Nellore and Warangal to enable the anxious kith and kin of the passengers to access information on the safety and condition of those travelling by the train.
The Help Line numbers are as follows:
Secunderabad - 040-27786723, 27700868
Nellore- 0861- 2345863, 2345864, 2345865, 2345866
Vijayawada-0866- 2576924, 2575038
Warangal-0870 -2426232, 09701371063
A special train from Chennai has been run, carrying the relatives and friends of the affected passengers, which reached Nellore station in the afternoon. Efforts are underway to identify the bodies of the deceased.
Railways have announced an enhanced Ex- gratia of Rs. 5 Lakhs to the kin of the deceased passengers, Rs. 1 Lakh to those grievously injured and Rs. 25,000 to the passengers with simple injuries.
A high level inquiry by the Commissioner of Railway Safety, South Central Circle has been ordered to investigate into the cause of this tragic Fire Accident.
Shri Mukul Roy, Hon'ble Minister of Railways, Shri K.H. Muniyappa, Hon'ble Minister of State for Railways, Shri Vinay Mittal, Chairman, Railway Board andShri Khulbhushan, Member Electrical, Railway Board have also rushed to Nellore to take stock of the situation and monitor the relief arrangements. They would also be visiting the injured passengers admitted in various hospitals at Nellore.
