Page 809 - Disaster Accident

Large bushfire burns near homes on Sydney outskirts

Hundreds of firefighters were today battling a large bushfire that was raging near Sydney suburbs, with authorities saying it was "miraculous" no houses had been damaged and no-one had been injured. New South Wales state police are investigating the cause of the bushfire in south-western Sydney, which started on Saturday afternoon amid unseasonably warm autumn weather and strong winds, with suspicions it was deliberately lit. The blaze has burnt through more than 2,430 hectares (6,005 acres) so far, with some locals evacuated from their homes. Despite the fire's size and its proximity to several suburbs, with some locals evacuated from their homes, no properties were known to be lost, the New South Wales Rural Fire Service said. "It is absolutely miraculous that we have not lost any lives and virtually no property and this is because of the hard work and dedication and heroism of our fire services," the state's acting Emergency Services Minister Mark Speakman told reporters ...

Tremors felt in Philippines

An earthquake measuring 5.4-magnitude on the Richter scale hit Philippine's main Luzon island on Monday, the volcanology and seismology institute said.

2 killed in small plane collision in Germany

At least persons have been killed after two small aircraft collided near Schwabisch Hall town in Germany's Baden-Wurttemberg state , police said.

18 killed in Ghana road accident

Eighteen people have been killed and at least 70 others injured when a passenger bus collided with two other vehicles in Ghana, police said.

Panic in Kolkata Metro

There was panic among commuters following repeated sparks and sudden darkness inside a Kolkata Metro Railway rake here on Sunday night.

Moderate quake hits off Indonesia, no tsunami warning

A moderately strong 5.9-magnitude earthquake hit Indonesia's Molucca Sea today, the US Geological Survey said, but no tsunami alert was issued. The quake struck at a depth of 36.5 kilometres, 85 kilometres northwest of Kota Ternate at 1 am IST, the USGS said. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said there was no tsunami threat and there were no immediate reports of damage. Indonesia sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire" where continental plates collide, causing frequent seismic and volcanic activity. A huge undersea quake in 2004 triggered a tsunami that killed more than 170,000 people in Aceh province, on western Sumatra island, and tens of thousands more in other countries with coasts on the Indian Ocean.

Report: At least 2 killed in Germany small plane collision

German public broadcaster SWR is reporting that two light planes have collided, killing at least two people. The broadcaster says the collision happened Sunday afternoon near the southwestern town of Schwaebisch Hall. SWR quotes police as saying it's unclear yet whether there are more victims. Regional daily Suedwest Presse reports the aircraft involved were an ultralight and a small plane. The newspaper says both were approaching Adolf-Wuerth Airport in Schwaebisch Hall for a landing at the time of the collision.

Massive fire at Rohingya camp in Delhi

A massive fire at a camp of the Rohingya refugees in southeast Delhi's Kalindi Kunj area today rendered at least 228 of them homeless, police said. The fire broke out at around 3.30am due to a short circuit in the electrical wiring system in the camp and spread rapidly, police said. As many as 44 shanties were gutted in the blaze. No casualties were reported. A fire department official said 11 fire tenders were rushed to the camp and it took them three hours to douse the fire. Police teams were sent to the camp to assist the fire-fighters in the rescue operation. All the Rohingya occupants of the camp have been moved safely to a temporary settlement, police said. A forensic team and officials from power discom BSES visited the camp to ascertain the cause of the fire. The Rohingya are an ethnic group, the majority of whom are Muslim, who have lived for centuries in the Buddhist-majority Myanmar. Myanmar has denied them citizenship since 1982, effectively rendering them stateless.

CISF nabs 3 with fake driving licenses at Imphal Airport

Three passengers travelling from Imphal to Bhopal were held by the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) at the Imphal airport on Saturday for producing counterfeit documents at the airport.Travelling by Indigo flight number 6E-358, the three passengers, who were identified as Dimkhawlnuam, Donlunching and Sianmuankham, produced fake driving licenses during inspection of their respective identity-proofs and tickets at the departure gate of the airport.Assistant Sub-Inspector Shibu A of the CISF instantly doubted the authenticity of the documents produced by the three and informed his seniors about the matter.Upon further inquiry, the passengers revealed their true identities; claiming they were Myanmar nationals and had forged their fraudulent driving licenses from Churachandpur district of Manipur for travelling Bangalore. On inspecting their luggage, an Aadhaar card in the name of Dimkhawlnuam was also recovered.Later, the three passengers along with their belongings were handed .

Infra, safety, technology focus areas for Railways: Lohani

Railway Board Chairman Ashwani Lohani today said that infrastructure, safety and technology were major focus areas for the Railways, adding that the public transporter was undertaking massive structural development to bridge the gap between demand and shortfall. "Infrastructure, safety and technology are three key areas for the Railways now. The need for infrastructure has gone up with the increasing number of passengers. Safety also remains our major focus. Besides, we are introducing technology and setting up new factories," Lohani said. He added, "The Railways is undertaking massive structural development to fill the gap between demand and shortfall. Capital expenditure has gone up. New tracks are being laid. Completion of Railway projects needs time. Outlay has been doubled in the past few years." Lohani was here to inaugurate 63rd Railway Week celebrations currently underway at the Bhopal Haat campus here. "We are increasing the number of coaches to meet the ...

Sydney bushfire: State of emergency declared

Over 500 firefighters responded on Sunday to a massive bushfire posing a serious threat to two residential neighbourhoods in Australia's most populated city of Sydney as the authorities declared a state of emergency.

Three killed in accident in Rajasthan

Three people, including a woman, were killed and two others injured today in a head-on collision between a tempo and a SUV in Rajasthan's Tonk district near here, police said. The accident took place near Saroli crossing on Tonk-Kota highway when the tempo on way from Tonk to Deoli rammed into the SUV coming from the opposite direction, said head constable Ram Gopal of Ghad Police Station. He said that the SUV passengers were on way to offer prayers at a Gurudwara in Dhuan Kalan village. The deceased were identified as Vikram Jeet Singh (38), Daljeet Kaur (50) travelling in the SUV and the tempo driver Surendra Yadav (20).

Four killed in lightning strike in Yavatmal district

Four persons were killed in lightning strike as untimely rains lashed Umarkhed, Mahagaon, Darwha and Yavatmal today. Four persons were killed and as many were injured after being struck by lightning at village Veni in Mahagaon tehsil of Yavatmal district this afternoon, officials said. The victims had taken shelter under a tree during rain when the tragedy took place. The injured were admitted to Pusad Government Hospital and their condition was stable, said resident Deputy Collector of Yavatmal, Narendra Fulzele. Those killed were identified as Prabhakar Narayan Jadhav (45), Laxman Ramesh Chopde (20), Pandit D H (40) and Anil Vishnu Sagurle (26), all residents of Veni. Hailstorm was witnessed at Dariyapur, Uchegaon and Sevadas Nagar in Darwha tehsil. Seven goats were killed in Darwha due to heavy rains and hailstorm, he added. In many areas crops were damaged by rains. "We have ordered the Patwaris and tehsildars to visit affected areas and inspect crop damage and file .

Driver crushed to death after parked truck slides down slope

The driver of a container truck today died while trying to stop the vehicle, which he had parked moments earlier, from sliding down a gradient, police said. The incident happened in Satpur's MIDC industrial area early this morning, a Satpur police official said. The driver, as yet unidentified, had parked the truck on Satpur-Shivaji road here and had got down to inquire about an address from a passerby when it started sliding due to a slope on the road, police said. "He tried to stop the truck but in the process came under its wheels and died instantly. The truck dashed into a few shops, damaged three two-wheelers and caused minor injuries to two people," the official said. "He had apparently kept the engine running and in neutral, which might have caused the accident," he added.

UK road crash that killed 8 Indians prompts calls to block legal loophole

One of the UK's worst road accidents that killed eight Indians last year has prompted calls from a road charity today to block a legal loophole which keeps employers in the dark about dangerous drivers. Brake called on the government to urgently address the issue of transport companies not being automatically told about a driver whose driving licence has been revoked. Two truck drivers, Ryszard Masierak and David Wagstaff, were jailed last month for causing the deaths of Nottingham-based Keralite minibus driver Cyriac Joseph and seven of his passengers - all Indians - in August 2017. The 52-year-old had been hired to drive his passengers from Nottingham to London to join a European holiday tour group when they met with the fatal accident. In court it emerged that Masierak's licence had been revoked in July 2017 but his employer, AIM Logistics, had not been informed. "This crash has had a truly devastating impact and laid bare the loophole in which employers are not automatically ...

Two coaches of passenger train derailed in Katni

Two coaches of the Katni-Chopan passenger train were derailed on Sunday near Khanna Banjari Station in Madhya Pradesh's Katni district.However, there is no loss of lives or injuries reported so far.Meanwhile, repairing work is underway.This comes a day after five coaches of the Katni-Chopan passenger train were derailed between Salhna-Pipariyakala in Katni district, leaving eight passengers injured.

Sangma meets Goyal, discusses coal mining ban issue

Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma today met Union Coal Minister Piyush Goyal in New Delhi and discussed the coal mining ban that has hit the northeastern state hard for the past four years. Goyal assured that he would look into the grievance of the coal miners, the Chief Minister's Office said in a statement here. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) had banned mining of coal in Meghalaya in 2014 after it received petitions on rampant violation of environment norms and utter disregard for safety measures by miners. The Union minister has assured finding an early solution to the problem, Sangma was quoted as saying in the statement. "Coal mining is important for the state and the region. It is important that a balance is struck considering the fragile environment. We discussed on ways to initiate coal mining in the state. Sangma said. Sangma said Goyal has given a positive response to the suggestions and ideas put forward by him and his cabinet colleagues. Sangma along

Six wagons of goods train travel without engine

Six coal-laden wagons of a goods train travelled for 2 km without an engine here, an incident which comes a week after an express train in Titlagarh travelled for 10 kilometres without an engine. The incident occurred when six wagons of a goods train from Dhamara to Jamshedpur got detached from the rest of the train and travelled about 2 km, without an engine, between Khantapada and Bahanaga stations yesterday night, a railway official said. However, a mishap was averted and nobody was hurt as the incident was detected immediately and the railway officials acted quickly, he said. "The last six wagons got detached from the train due to snapping of coupling and some mechanical fault which was immediately resolved," the Station Manager of Balasore Railway Station, Bhagabat Das, said. As a precautionary measure, movement of trains on the tracks was conrolled for around two hours. An engine was sent to Bahanaga railway station to bring the detached wagons and attach them to the

After chopper crash, Pawan Hans to conduct organisational audit

Helicopter services provider Pawan Hans is in the process of carrying out an organisational audit after completion of two safety audits against the backdrop of a chopper crash that killed seven people in January. Pawan Hans Chairman and Managing Director B P Sharma asserted that the company has a "very robust safety system" that has been further strengthened. "We are the first helicopter company that has got the safety management manual approved by the DGCA... We have already (done) two audits -- one with Airbus and one with RWSI (Rotary Wing Society of India). We are also doing the third one with independent international experts to improve upon the system that we have," he told PTI. According to Sharma, the major audit plan will completely look into the organisation as a whole. The disinvestment-bound company -- which is a joint venture between the government and state-owned ONGC -- has a fleet of 42 helicopters and plans to lease eight more as it prepares to start services under ...

Six injured in train derailment in MP

At least six people were injured when four coaches of a passenger train derailed in Katni district in Madhya Pradesh, a railway official said on Sunday.