"the coach I was in got derailed at a very high speed."
The evening of June 2, 2023, saw one of India’s deadliest train crashes in almost two decades.
The Coromandel Express, which runs from Kolkata to Chennai, was travelling at around 80mph when it collided with a stationary freight train in Odisha, causing it to derail.
Carriages from the freight train then hit coaches from the Howrah Superfast Express, which was travelling in the opposite direction.
At least 280 people have been killed, with 900 more injured.
Authorities said the number is likely to rise as rescue efforts continued with thousands deployed to the scene to help.
Rescue dogs and metal cutters are being used to try to locate and reach those trapped.
Relatives of those who had been on board the trains rushed to the crash site and began searching for their loved ones.
Among them was Rabindra Shau, who was looking for his son.
He said: “Please help me find my son. At least help me with his dead body.”
Sheikh Zakir Hussain, of West Bengal, said he was trying to get news of his older brother, his son and three of his neighbours.
They had boarded a train near Shalimar and were headed to Chennai for work.
He said: “Since the time I heard the news of the accident, I called my brother and nephew but their phones were switched off.
“I came early in the morning and have been since going from one hospital to another but there is no trace of them.
“I even went to the spot and saw heaps of bodies lying.
“I saw the faces of more than 100 dead people but could not find my brother, nephew or my neighbours.”
One survivor had been asleep on the train but was awoken as his carriage derailed.
He explained: “Some 10 to 15 people fell over me.
“I injured my hand and neck. When I got out of the train, I saw limbs scattered all around, a leg here, a hand there. Someone’s face was disfigured.”
Chennai-based Gobina Mondal was sitting in the first carriage of the Coromandel Express that derailed.
“There was a sudden crash and the coach I was in got derailed at a very high speed. It skidded for some distance.”
Describing how he pushed his way through a broken carriage window to escape, Gobina added:
“I could see some injured people inside the coach asking for help. One of them was complaining of pain in the chest.”
Locals who heard the screech of brakes and the sound of the trains colliding rushed to the site and worked to pull passengers from the wreckage.
Shopkeeper Ashok Samal heard the crash and ran to the tracks.
He detailed: “There were loud shrieks and blood all over.
“Several persons in the trapped bogies were wailing to help them, I saw several bodies trapped under the upturned coaches.”
One doctor at SCB Medical College and Hospital said they were “overwhelmed”.
He said: “Some have lost their limbs and many have serious injuries across their bodies.
“Around 20 injured people who were brought to me, passed away while we were trying to treat them.
“The hospital is flooded with the injured. They are lying on the floor. We are rushing from one patient to another.
“I just managed to attend to the wounds of a small girl child, she is doing well. But we have no idea about her parents.”
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