VISAKHAPATNAM: The state government on Saturday night confirmed the first casualty from Andhra in the Odisha train tragedy. The deceased has been identified as Gurumurthi, who hailed from Santhabommali in Srikakulam.
According to IT Minister Gudivada Amarnath, Gurumurthi died while undergoing treatment at a hospital in the Balasore district in Odisha.
The minister, who interacted with the injured passengers undergoing treatment at SMMC Hospital in Balasore, said that 11 Andhra-bound passengers injured in the mishap were identified.
“Of those injured, nine have been shifted to Visakhapatnam for better treatment, and two others have been taken to Apollo Hospital in Bhubaneswar,” the minister stated. He added that officials received around 30 photographs of unidentified deceased passengers. However, it is yet to be identified if they hailed from Andhra Pradesh.
Speaking to reporters in Visakhapatnam, Education Minister Botcha Satyanarayana said, “As many as 571 Andhra-bound passengers were travelling on both Coromandel Express and Yesvantpur Express, which met with an accident on Friday. The whereabouts of 141 passengers are yet to be traced.”
267 of 482 AP-bound passengers were safely rescued
“Of the 482 Andhra-bound passengers who boarded Coromandel Express, 267 were safely rescued, 20 sustained minor injuries and 82 people didn’t take up the journey. However, there has been no response from 113 passengers so far. Of the 89 passengers who boarded Yesvantpur Express at various railway stations in Andhra, 49 were safely rescued, 2 suffered minor injuries, and 10 didn’t travel. There has been no response from 28 passengers,” the minister elaborated and added that full details of passengers from the state would be known by Sunday morning.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy has been closely monitoring the situation. He said helplines had been set up in all the collectorates of the coastal districts. “All hospitals in the districts have been kept ready for the treatment of the passengers. Arrangements have been made for the injured at two corporate hospitals in Bhubaneswar,” Jagan stated.
On the instructions of the Chief Minister, a high-level team led by IT Minister Gudivada Amaranth has been extending all possible assistance to the passengers from the state at the accident spot. Two medical teams with MROs, one each, have been set up at Bhubaneswar and Cuttack railway stations, and 50 ambulances have been deployed at the accident site. A chopper has been kept on standby at Bhubaneswar airport. A WhatsApp number 9154405292 has been set up at the Visakhapatnam collectorate for tracing the missing passengers.