CHENNAI: The derailment of 12 coaches of Train number 12578 Mysore-Darbhanga Bagmati Express took place after colliding with a stationary goods train at Kavaraipettai station, 50 km north of Chennai on Friday night. The incident could have caused the deaths of at least 50 people, if not for the features of the Linke-Hoffman-Busche (LHB) coaches of the train.
Though many officials involved in the rescue process on Friday night hailed the lack of casualties as a miracle, given that there were more than 1000 passengers on the train, engineering technology played a bigger role, say authoritative sources.
The LHB coaches have three important features that help prevent fatalities in such accidents, said Shubhranshu, former Principal Chief Mechanical Engineer (PCME) of Integral Coach Factory, Chennai- one of the largest coach manufacturing units in the world.
Firstly, the coaches have an anti-climbing feature thanks to strong couplers which ensure that the coaches scatter on the ground in case of such an impactful accident, instead of climbing over each other.
Secondly, the bogie and the body of the coach have a stronger integration, and thirdly, the coaches have a stronger shell made of stainless steel and better reinforcement and hence do not crumple or tear up, Shubhranshu said.
“If it had been the earlier ICF-design coaches without the anti-climbing features, there might have been heavy casualties,” the retired official said.
Five of the 12 derailed coaches had indeed capsized after the derailment due to the impact of the collision, as was visible on the spot.
These factors were also seconded by an official spokesperson of Southern Railway.
Railway officials also pointed out that the Electric locomotive of the Bagmati Express collided with the brake van of the stationary goods train. This crumpled the van, a hollow structure, meaning that it absorbed a larger amount of energy and hence decreased the impact on the passenger-carrying coaches, Shubhranshu said.