In the eastern Indian state of Odisha, a collision involving three trains has resulted in at least 261 fatalities and 1,000 injuries.

On Friday, a passenger train derailed onto a neighboring track and was hit by an approaching train, also colliding with a nearby halted goods train.

Following a thorough examination of the debris by hundreds of emergency personnel, a sizable recovery effort is in progress.

The reason behind India’s biggest railway accident in more than 20 years is still unknown. A halted goods train caused many Coromandel Express carriages to derrail at around 19:00 (13:30 GMT) in the Balasore area, according to officials. The train was going between Kolkata (formerly Calcutta) and Chennai (formerly Madras). On the other track, some of its instructors eventually ended up.

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The Howrah Superfast Express, which runs from Yesvantpur to Howrah, then struck the flipped carriages as it was moving in the opposite way.

Atul Karwal, head of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), told the ANI news agency that numerous coaches were crushed and damaged as a consequence of the force with which the trains impacted.

According to the state’s chief secretary Pradeep Jena, more than 200 ambulances, as well as several medical professionals, nurses, and rescuers, were dispatched to the area.

Director General of Odisha Fire Services Sudhanshu Sarangi had originally reported 288 fatalities.

All passengers who were entrapped and hurt have been freed. How severe the wounds of those rushed to hospitals were remains unclear. Restoration efforts have started at the collision site, according to India’s South Eastern Railway company.