Two British nationals were killed when a chartered train coming to Shimla from Kalka derailed near Taksaal on Saturday. More than a dozen passengers who were injured in the accident have been admitted to the ESI hospital at Parwanoo and some of them have been referred to the Max hospital at Chandigarh.
The “toy train,” a narrow gauge railway service, was hired by a group of British tourists and had a guide and agent from Shimla.
Two of the four bogies derailed after about 4 km when the train picked up speed and could not negotiate a curve near Taksaal, said sources. Out of 37 passengers on board, 34 were foreigners.
The Himachal Pradesh government authorities are in touch with the U.K. embassy, said a government spokesman here. Rescue teams have reached the spot.
Vinay Arora, Station Superintendent at Kalka, Northern Railway, denied over-speeding led to the accident.
A PTI report said two women aged about 35 and 65 died on the spot while one of the injured passengers had died at a Chandigarh hospital.
An inquiry is being ordered into the derailment and senior officials, including Railway Board Member (Engineering) V.K. Gupta and Northern Railway General Manager A.K. Puthia have rushed to the spot, according to an official.
Three of the injured were in a critical condition, with two of them having sustained head injuries while another one had suffered a fracture, Head of the Emergency Services of Max Hospital, Sumit Arya, said in Mohali.
Patients were in a state of shock and unable to come to terms how a day of joy and outing had turned into mourning and despair.
(With additional inputs from PTI)