BAHANAGA: Eight-month-old Divya Kumari was in a state of daze but it was mostly because of all the chaos that surrounded her at Bahanaga Bazar Railway Station. The little one from Bihar had escaped with a minor scar.The deadliest train mishap of the country on Saturday that claimed about 288 lives also saw some of the most miraculous stories of escape.
The infant escaped unhurt; and so did her parents and three sisters who were rescued without any major injuries. All of them were in the unreserved compartment of the ill-fated Coromandel Express. The family was travelling in one of the two bogies that turned upside down. The baby was with her father on the upper berth while her mother and other children were in the lower berths.
“We were sleeping when the mishap occurred. However, when I opened my eyes, I found myself lying down on my stomach while the baby was on my back as if some miracle happened,” said the infant’s father Rajesh Turia from Bihar Sharif. Rajesh was travelling to Chennai for work. Rajesh, his wife and daughters sustained minor injuries but all were safe after receiving first aid at the railway camp near the accident spot. Nandu Ravi Das, another passenger from Bihar, said when the train collided, he thought everything was over. However, he managed to escape with minor injuries.