A video purportedly recorded moments before the Kolkata-Sairang Express derailment has emerged that shows the driver reporting that the emergency brake was not working. In the 45-second shaky video shared by NDTV, a man is heard saying, "BP pressure kam nahi ho raha," referring to the brake pipe pressure not reducing.
"The signal is red. The emergency brake is applied, but it is not working," he says as the person identified as the driver operates several switches.
"Kuch bhi kaam nahi kar raha hai (Nothing is working)," the man adds, his voice growing urgent. The footage then shows a jolt, with a glass bottle falling from a countertop. The authenticity of the video and the cause of the derailment were not independently verified.
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The Kolkata-Sairang Express derailed near Digaru railway station in Assam's Kamrup (Metropolitan) district around 6.54 am. A pantry car manager told news agency ANI that the train had halted at Guwahati before resuming its journey. He said it slowed as it approached Digaru station and that he heard a sound after it crossed the platform.
"Barely a few metres ahead, I felt the engine derail," he told ANI, claiming that the train continued moving for about a kilometre in that condition. He said he fell from his seat three times and that those inside were unable to open the door. According to his account, the train stopped about 10 minutes later.
A recovery train has been sent to the site to assist with rescue operations and clear the tracks, the railway official said.
The NFR general manager and other senior officials have also proceeded to Digaru to monitor the situation and oversee restoration work. There were no immediate reports of deaths or injuries, a Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) spokesperson said. Passengers are being transported to their destinations by an alternative train.
The train was travelling from Kolkata to Sairang, near Mizoram's capital Aizawl. It is an important rail link connecting Mizoram with Kolkata and other parts of eastern India. Following the incident, the movement of the Janshatabdi Express from Guwahati to Jorhat, and the Coimbatore-Silchar Express, has been controlled at Panbari and Panikhaiti, respectively.
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