The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Friday, May 16, 2003, Chandigarh, India

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Burning train claims 38 lives
Naveen S. Garewal
Tribune News Service

Laddowal (Ludhiana), May 15
Thirty-eight persons, including women and children, lost their lives when a fire engulfed three coaches of the Golden Temple Mail (Frontier Mail) en route to Amritsar from Mumbai. The fire broke out within 10 minutes of the train leaving Ludhiana station in the early hours today.

Twelve critically injured passengers are struggling for life in Ludhiana hospitals.

Most of the victims include passengers sleeping on the top berths of the middle coach (S4), who did not get enough time to move out.

Eyewitnesses said the smoke was so intense that several people fainted before being consumed by the fire that spread quickly to the two adjoining compartments. Thirty-four of the 38 casualties were reported from this compartment, a second-class three-tier coach.

The fire broke out around 4 am, just short of the Laddowal bridge on the Ludhiana-Jalandhar section. Some vigilant Army jawans pulled the chain, bringing the train to a halt. But for this, the fire would have spread further.

With the help of fellow passengers, these Army personnel broke the vacuum connection between the burning compartments and those behind it, preventing the fire from reaching coach S 6.

Even as forensic experts from the Punjab police and the Army have ruled out the possibility of sabotage, they are working on the theory that the fire could have been caused either by a short circuit or from a burning cigarette stub thrown accidentally on an inflammable material like a cooking stove that could have been a part of the passenger luggage.

Sniffer dogs from the Punjab Police Academy brought to the site too could not detect any explosive.

At least six persons who tried to find safety in a bathroom, thinking that it would be isolated from the fire, died before they were even noticed by passengers helping in the rescue operations.

But for the timely help of some Army personnel travelling in the train, the casualty would have been much higher as it took nearly 40 minutes for any rescue team to reach the site after the fire started.

The site presented a ghastly scene with rows of dead bodies wrapped in white sheets lining the area adjoining the railway track. The bodies were burnt beyond recognition, making identification a tough job. So far only, 13 bodies have been identified.

Mr L.R. Thapar, Chief Operations Manager, Indian Railways, Northern Region, who was also on board the ill-fated train told The Tribune, “The train caught fire sometime between 3.50 am and 4 am. The first medical rescue team arrived at 4.40 am. In the meantime, it was fellow passengers, mainly Army personnel, who physically threw women and children out of the train. But for them, the tragedy would have been much bigger".

He added that over 200 persons were travelling in the three compartments at the time of the accident.

The district administration, Army Medical Corps and several private hospitals rushed teams of specialists to the site after learning about the accident from television news. In fact, newsmen were the first to arrive at the site of the accident, located just short of village Laddowal, about 12 kilo metres from Ludhiana on the Ludhiana-Jalandhar rail track.

Ludhiana Deputy Commissioner Anurag Agarwal, who was among the first few to reach the site, said the possibility of sabotage was remote, if any. He said forensic experts were working on various theories about the cause of fire, but we could almost rule out sabotage.

He disclosed that most of the victims were travelling long distance and hailed from places as far as Kerala and Maharashtra. The administration has put up an enquiry counters at Ludhiana railway station where, besides other information, photo albums containing pictures of the victims are available for identification purposes.

However, the bodies are so badly burnt that identification merely from the appearance is virtually impossible. Eyewitnesses, including Havaldar Bhagwan Singh, said, "Some families were completely wiped out in the fire". There are others who have lost two or more members of their family in the tragedy. Lance Daffadar Shaji, an army personnel is one of them. He lost his wife Betty (35) and children Johny (12) and Tony (7) in this tragedy.

Brig Sunil Dhawan, Commander 715 (I) AD Brigade put several officers from his formation into rescue operations. Tents were also put up to provide water, food and tea to the relatives of the passengers who were still in a state of shock. Brigadier Dhawan commended the Army jawans on board the train for their role in the rescue operations. Their names he said would be taken up for a suitable reward.

The Civil Surgeon, Dr S.N Tewari, said the 13 critically injured had been moved to the intensive care units at Christian Medical College and Hospital and the Dayanand Hospital in Ludhiana. These patients, he said, had inhaled very strong fumes that have caused pulmonary oedema. Some of them required tracheotomy and artificial ventricular support. "All these patients are critical till they are dependent on the life support system", he added.

Personnel of the Army Medical Corps assisted the civil administration in providing medical aid to the injured.

The victims are likely to be given a mass funeral in the absence of proper identification after a post mortem is conducted on the bodies at the Civil Hospital at Ludhiana. Out of the 13 identified, three relatives of the deceased have taken away the dead bodies, while the remaining have been kept in the Civil Hospital Mortuary.

Union Railway Minister Nitish Kumar, Punjab Governor O.P Verma and state Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh visited the accident site and also paid a visit to the injured in hospital during the day. All have ruled out the possibility of sabotage.