Rail accident kills 12 in western India after passengers jump onto tracks over fire alert

New Delhi
At least 12 train passengers were killed in western India Wednesday after being struck by another train on an adjacent track after they jumped from their coaches in panic to escape a rumored fire incident, the Press Trust of India reported.

At least six other people were injured, the news agency cited police officer Dattatraya Karale as saying.

The accident occurred in Jalgaon, one of the largest cities in Maharashtra, near the Pardhade railroad station, 410 kilometers (255 miles) northeast of Mumbai, India’s financial capital.

PTI said the victims jumped off the Pushpak Express train, which had stopped after some passengers pulled an emergency chain. Those who disembarked were hit by another express train on the adjacent railroad track, PTI quoted railway spokesman Swapnil Nila as saying.

“Our preliminary information is that there were sparks inside one of the coaches of the Pushpak Express due to either a ‘hot axle’ or ‘brake-binding’ (jamming), and some passengers panicked. They pulled the chain, and some of them jumped down on the tracks. At the same time, Karnataka Express was passing on the adjoining track,” a senior railway official told PTI.

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