At least 60 dead in India train disaster

(Amritsar) – A speeding train ran over revellers watching fireworks during a Hindu festival in northern India Friday, killing more than 60 people, with eyewitnesses saying they were given no warning before disaster struck.

The crowd had gathered on railway tracks in the city of Amritsar in Punjab state to watch a fireworks show marking the Dussehra festival when the train barrelled down the line at high speed.

“There was a lot of noise as firecrackers were being let off and it appears they (victims) were unable to hear the approaching train,” a police official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

“There are more than 50 dead. The priority now is to take the injured to the hospital,” Amritsar city police commissioner S. S. Srivastava told reporters.

More than 60 people who were injured were being given emergency treatment at various hospitals across the city, he added.

TV footage showed crowds gathered around the venue where an effigy of demon king Ravana was set alight, exploding into a huge fireball.

One of the revellers, Mintoo, a migrant labourer who uses one name, told the Hindustan Times daily that he had no idea the train was approaching.

“It had become dark and everyone was watching the effigy go up in flames when the train suddenly appeared,” he said.

An eyewitness speaking to a local TV channel described scenes of “utter commotion” when the crowds noticed the train “coming very fast” towards them.

“Everyone was running helter-skelter and suddenly the train crashed into the crowds of people,” he said.