Andhra Pradesh - Nalgonda   

Officials fail to act in time, say survivors

Staff Reporter

`Passengers sat on bogies looking for help for four hours'

SHATTERED: Relatives weeping at the site of the accident on Saturday. Photo: Mohd. Yousuf

NALGONDA: Survivors of the train accident were critical of the alleged delay in launching rescue operations by railway authorities and the district administration.

"Nobody bothered to respond immediately. Had they (officials) acted swiftly, we would have saved many more people," a youngster travelling in a general compartment, Srikanth, told The Hindu .

Mr. Srikanth and his friends were at a loss to understand as to why officials took more than three hours to reach out to the victims.

"From 4.30 a.m. to 8 a.m. we were waiting for help. Officials were sent to the spot only after 8.30 a.m.," another youngster claimed.

Though there was no chance to check the veracity of his claim, another passenger said that he had informed about the tragedy to railway officials by 4.35 a.m. "For four hours, we sat on bogies praying gods," another survivor said.

Till Army personnel arrived, none made any effort to come to our rescue, rued yet another passenger. No official could be contacted for his or her version.

Saris as ropes!

Braving adverse weather condition, some youngsters like Shyampal of Tenali and Sharif of Repalle rescued many women and children from the flooded bogies. "We used saris as ropes and slowly brought women and children out of water," Mr. Shyampal said.

Some 150 survivors were brought to Nalgonda railway station by a special train. Three buses were arranged to send them to their destination, Hyderabad.

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