Nine killed as Bandra-Dehradun Express catches fire in Thane, Maharashtra

Thane –  Nine people were killed in their sleep when a fire broke out in three sleeper coaches of the Bandra-Dehradun Express in Maharashtra’s Thane district late last night. (Helpline numbers: 022-23011853, 022-23007388)

The fire spread in the S3, S4 and S5 coaches of the train at around 2:30 am, when most passengers were asleep.

The train is now at the Gholvad Railway Station, around 145 km from north of Mumbai on the Maharasthra-Gujarat border, where rescue teams and fire brigades have been rushed. Efforts are currently on to separate the three charred coaches, so that the rest of the train can be sent to Dehradun.

“Nine people have died from the fire which spread to three coaches in the night. The fire broke out at about 2:30 am,” said the press officer for Western Railways, Sharat Chandrayan. Union

Railway Minister Mallikarjun Kharge has announced an ex-gratia of Rs. 500,000 to the families of the dead. The Railway Board has ordered an inquiry into the incident.

Last month, a fire raced through a train carriage packed with sleeping passengers in Andhra Pradesh, killing 26 people and forcing terrified passengers to smash windows in a frantic bid to escape.