Page 420 - Disaster Accident
Russian President Vladimir Putin offers condolences on Amritsar train accident
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday offered condolences to India on a train accident near Amritsar in Punjab, which claimed 61 lives, the Russian Embassy said. According to the Russian embassy, Putin offered condolences to President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the train accident. He conveyed his support to families of the victims of the train accident. "I offer my deepest sympathies over tragic consequences of an accident on railways in the Punjab state. I ask to convey my words of sympathy and support to families and friends of the killed people and to wish the soonest recovery to those injured," Putin said, according to the Russian embassy. At least 61 people were killed and 72 injured Friday evening after a crowd of Dussehra revellers that had spilled onto railway tracks while watching burning of Ravana effigy was run over by a train near Amritsar, officials said. The train was coming from Jalandhar when the accident occurred at Joda Phatak near ...
Railways not responsible for Amritsar tragedy: Lohani
Hours after 60 hapless Dussehra revellers were mowed down by a train here in Punjab, Chairman Railway Board Ashwani Lohani on Saturday dismissed the railways' responsibility in the tragedy.
Amritsar train tragedy: Bollywood shocked, calls for better safety
The deplorable train tragedy in Amritsar in which 60 people were crushed to death and several others injured, brings the focus to how safety in public places needs to be taken more seriously in the country, say Bollywood celebrities who have sent out prayers for the victims.
37 trains cancelled, 16 diverted day after Amritsar tragedy
The railways cancelled 37 trains and diverted 16 trains on Saturday, a day after Dussehra revellers were mowed down by a train while they were watching the burning of a Ravan effigy while standing on the tracks near Amritsar, officials said. Sixty-one people were killed and more than 70 injured in the tragedy. Giving details, the railways said 10 mail/express trains and 27 passenger trains were cancelled. While 16 trains were diverted and reached their destination through a different route, 18 trains were short terminated, Northern Railways spokesperson Deepak Kumar said. The route between Jalandhar and Amritsar was suspended, he said. The railways maintains it had no information about the Dussehra function held near the tracks. Chairman Railway Board Ashwani Lohani said in a statementthat the accident occurred at a midsection between the Amritsar and Manawala stations and not at a level crossing. "There was no information and no permission sought from us. The event took place at a ...
Europe, Japan send spacecraft on 7-year journey to Mercury
European and Japanese space agencies said an Ariane 5 rocket successfully lifted a spacecraft carrying two probes into orbit Saturday for a joint mission to Mercury, the closest planet to the sun. The European Space Agency and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency said the unmanned BepiColombo spacecraft successfully separated and was sent into orbit from French Guiana as planned to begin a seven-year journey to Mercury. They said the spacecraft, named after Italian scientist Giuseppe "Bepi" Colombo, was in the right orbit and has sent the first signal after the liftoff. ESA says the 1.3 billion-euro (USD 1.5 billion) mission is one of the most challenging in its history. Mercury's extreme temperatures, the intense gravity pull of the sun and blistering solar radiation make for hellish conditions. The BepiColombo spacecraft will have to follow an elliptical path that involves a fly-by of Earth, two of Venus and six of Mercury itself so it can slow down before arriving at its ...
39 of those killed in Amritsar train accident identified: Officials
Thirty-nine of the 61 people killed in the train accident near here have been identified so far, officials said Saturday. The injured have been admitted to seven hospitals, they said. According to officials, the post-mortem examination on 29 bodies has been done. At least 61 people were killed and 72 injured Friday evening after a crowd of Dussehra revellers that had spilled onto railway tracks while watching burning of Ravana effigy was run over by a train near here, officials said. The train was coming from Jalandhar when the accident occurred at Joda Phatak near Amritsar, where at least 300 people were watching 'Ravana dahan' at a ground adjacent to the tracks.
Amritsar train tragedy: Railways deny responsibility
Hours after 60 people were crushed to death by a train while watching the burning of a Ravana effigy here, the Railways on Saturday said it was not responsible for the tragedy.
Heavy police deployment at train accident site
Punjab Police commandos and Rapid Action Force (RAF) personnel have been deployed at the site of a train accident, which claimed 61 lives, to manage a huge crowd on Saturday. A heavy police deployment has been made to keep the situation in order. Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh will visit the site later in the day. The accident took place near Amritsar, when a train ran through the crowd that had assembled across the tracks to watch the Dussehra event. At least 61 people were killed and 72 injured Friday evening after a crowd of Dussehra revellers that had spilled onto railway tracks while watching burning of Ravana effigy was run over by a train near here, officials said. The train was coming from Jalandhar when the accident occurred at Joda Phatak near Amritsar, where at least 300 people were watching 'Ravana dahan' at a ground adjacent to the tracks. On Saturday, Singh ordered an inquiry into the tragic Amritsar train accident.
#AmritsarTrainAccident terrible thing to have happened: Alia
Bollywood celebrities, including Alia Bhatt and Anil Kapoor, among others have expressed their grief over the Amritsar train mishap.Around 60 people lost their lives after a train ran into people watching Dussehra celebrations near a train track in Amritsar's Choura Bazar on Friday.While sending prayers to the victims and their families, the 'Brahmastra' star underscored the negligence of the authorities. She tweeted, "The #AmritsarTrainAccident is heartbreaking! Terrible terrible thing to have happened..This is just another example our extremely poor attitude towards caution and safety.. Prayers for all those suffering"Here's what the others posted:Anil Kapoor: A tragic incident that could have been avoided if only. Sending my thoughts and prayers to the families of the deceased and wishing a speedy recovery for the ones injured. #AmritsarAnupam Kher: "The most painful tears are not the ones that fall from your eyes and cover your face. They are the ones that fall from your heart and
Amritsar: Nearly 100 affected, claims Civil Hospital Emergency Medical Officer
Nearly 100 people have been affected by the tragedy, where a crowd of Dussehra revellers spilled onto the railway track was run over by a train here, claimed Emergency Medical Officer at Civil Hospital.Dr Bhupinder Singh, Emergency Medical Officer at Civil Hospital said, "Exact figure of casualty is not very clear. We can explain about those who are with us. There is a displayed list of 51 patients, 39 dead bodies are here for the postmortem, and about 10 were indoor patients in which 6 are still here so the count of accident victims that we have received at this hospital is approaching to 100. Patients have also gone to other hospitals and it certainly it is a big tragedy. Maximum deaths have occurred due to blood loss, head injuries and fractures."Singh further asserted that adequate number of medical professionals have been deployed to assist the patients.Sharing more details of the casualties, senior police official Lakhbir Singh, said, "Total 59 people were brought here, out of .
Amritsar Train Tragedy: Avoid mudslinging, Sidhu urges political parties
Expressing grief over the loss of life caused after a train mowed down scores of people here, Punjab Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu on Saturday urged all political parties to avoid indulging in mudslinging.Sidhu, who visited the civil hospital here to meet the bereaved families, said the accident was an outcome of negligence and that it was not motivated.Navjot Sidhu said, "This is a very unfortunate accident. These people have come here to celebrate a festival and this tragedy had taken away loved ones of many families. It is important to understand that this was an accident. There were people standing on the railway track and some were sitting on the stones around it. When the Raavan effigy was burnt, few more people stepped back and came towards railway track. The train came in high speed and no horns were heard due to crackers. This was negligence and no one actually had an intent or motive of it to happen."Sidhu also asserted that his wife and Punjab Congress leader Navjot Kaur ...
Assam districts bordering Arunachal on flood alert
Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal Saturday directed authorities in districts bordering Arunachal Pradesh to "remain alert" for possible flash flood after China informed India about a landslide blocking a river in Tibet leading to the formation of an artificial lake. Sonowal has directed the authorities in Dhemaji, Dibrugarh, Lakgimpur and Tinsukia districts to remain alert and take all possible steps to prevent any major catastrophe, a spokesman of the Chief Minister's Office said here. The Yarlung Tsangpo river is known as the Siang after it enters India at Arunachal Pradesh from the Tibetan region and is called the Brahmaputra once it reaches Assam. The district administration, District Disaster Management Authorities (DDMA) and all other departments concerned have been asked to remain on alert. Six NDRF teams from Kolkata are scheduled to arrive here and will move to the districts as and when required. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj spoke to the Chief Minister Friday
Amritsar train tragedy: Train driver detained, questioned
The Punjab and Railway Police on Saturday questioned the driver of a train that crushed at least 60 people to death here while they were watching the burning of a Ravana effigy from a railway track.
Police begin probe as train mows down 58 Dussehra revellers in Punjab
The Punjab Police has launched an investigation into the Dusshera tragedy here on Friday evening in which a local train crushed at least 58 people while watching the burning of a Ravana effigy from a railway track.
1 dead, dozens hurt after tour bus, pickup truck collide
Authorities say one person has died and nearly 40 others have been injured after a tour bus and a pickup truck collided on a central Pennsylvania highway. News outlets report the crash occurred Friday afternoon on State Route 147 in Northumberland County. Evangelical Community Hospital in Lewisburg tweeted that it received 33 people from the crash. Hospital officials say the patients mostly had minor injuries. An additional six passengers were taken to a Danville hospital. Steve Born, a spokesman for tour operator Globus, tells The Daily Item that the driver of the pickup truck was killed. Born says the majority of the passengers on the tour bus were from Australia and New Zealand. Passenger David Knight says the tour started in Niagara Falls and was headed south to Lancaster County.
58 Dussehra revellers crushed by train in Punjab, police begin probe
The Punjab Police has launched an investigation into the Dusshera tragedy here on Friday evening in which a local train crushed at least 58 people while watching the burning of a Ravana effigy from a railway track.
Wrong to hold Railways responsible for Amritsar tragedy: Ashwani Lohani
Hours after the Amritsar train accident, Railway Board Chairman Ashwani Lohani on Saturday said it would be wrong to say that the Railways is responsible for the tragic incident, adding that people need to be more alert.Speaking to ANI, Lohani asserted that the Railways administration was not informed about the Dussehra celebrations taking place near the main line. He further briefed that the two manned level-crossing on the track, where the accident took place, was closed."It would be wrong to say that Railways is responsible for this accident. There are two manned level-crossing on that track, both were close. It is the main line. There is no speed restriction there. The Railway administration was not informed about the Dussehra celebration near mainline. People were watching Dussehra celebrations from railway tracks. People need to be more alert; they must not trespass on railway tracks," he said.After taking the stock of the situation at Guru Nanak Dev Hospital, Punjab Governor VP
Officials: 35 lives, $1.3 billion in timber lost to hurricane Michael
Trees brought down by hurricane Michael's ferocious winds took a heavy toll on life, property and the timber industry in the heavily forested Florida Panhandle, where USD 1.3 billion in timber was lost, authorities said Friday. A firefighter became the latest death attributed to the storm when he was killed by a falling tree while helping clear debris with family members more than a week after Michael blew ashore with 255 mph (410 kph) winds. Fire coordinator Brad Price, 49, of Wewahitchka was on his tractor when he was killed Thursday, the Gulf County Sheriff's Office said on its official Facebook page. "We love you, grieve with you, and are praying for all of you," Gulf County firefighters said on their Facebook page. That brought the storm's death toll in Florida to 25, and 35 overall across the South where, in addition to tree falls, deaths came when the storm decimated homes with winds and storm surge, cut power to those reliant on electricity for medical conditions and swept ...
Amritsar tragedy: SAD condoles loss of lives, demands probe
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has condemned the tragic train accident in Punjab's Amritsar during Dussehra celebrations, where 60 people have lost their lives while 51 others have sustained injuries.SAD President Sukhbir Singh Badal took to Twitter to question why local organisers and the Punjab police allowed celebrations to be held near the railway track, risking the lives of visitors."Extremely sad to hear the unfortunate death of innocent devotees watching Dussehra at Joda Gate in Amritsar by a speeding train. Local organisers and police must answer how the celebrations were allowed to be held near the railway track," the SAD chief tweeted.Expressing grief over the unfortunate incident, Union Minister of Food Processing Industries and SAD leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal said the incident needs to be probed as it casts serious questions on the administration."There are not enough words to mourn the Amritsar train tragedy that claims so many innocent lives. My deepest condolences to the
Road crash kills 27 in South Africa: official
At least 27 people were killed Friday in a road crash in South Africa's northern Limpopo province after a truck swerved into oncoming traffic when its tyre burst, a local minister said. The accident involving multiple vehicles killed 25 travelling in a mini-bus taxi and two more in a sports utility vehicle. "Overall we lost 27 people with four others sustaining serious bodily injuries," said the provincial transport minister Makoma Makhurupetje. "What happened today is nothing short of a disaster," she said in a statement. Earlier she told AFP the truck had burst one of its front tyres. "Unfortunately it crossed over into oncoming traffic with another four vehicles and one of the vehicles was a taxi (minibus)," Makhurupetge said. Despite having one of the most sophisticated road networks on the continent, South Africa battles with a high rate of road fatalities blamed mostly on speeding, reckless driving, unroadworthy vehicles and failure to use seat belts.