Train inferno kills 74 in RY Khan

MULTAN: At least 74 people died and 40 others were injured when three carriages of the Rawalpindi-bound Tezgam Express caught fire near the Channi Goth town at Tanwari railway station, about 93 kilometres off Bahawalpur, on Thursday.

Railways Minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad claimed that the fire was caused by a gas cylinder explosion, which was ignited by passengers going to attend the Raiwind Ijtema of Tableeghi Jamaat, for cooking food.

The impact of the fire was so severe that the burnt bodies of more than 60 victims of the tragedy, which had been shifted to Shaikh Zayed Hospital, Rahim Yar Khan, were yet to be identified.

Also, the Pak-Italian Modern Burns Centre (PIMBC) imposed an emergency soon after nine victims were airlifted there. PIMBC Director Prof Dr Naheed Chaudhry said that majority of burnt victims belonged to Mirpur Khas, Umerkot and Karachi. The PIMBC has referred three of them to Multan Nishtar Hospital emergency.

Prof Dr Naheed said the victims were identified as Abdul Rehman, Muhammad Zahid, Rafique, Liaqat (unknown districts), Akhtar Ali, Mukhtar, Kashif (Mirpur Khas), Rizwan (Umerkot) and Shahzad Abbas (Karachi). He said all victims are being provided complete medical treatment at PIMBC.

The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said that one air ambulance was dispatched to Liaquatpur and along with CMH doctors. The army ambulance helicopter has safely shifted victim passenger to PIMBC for treatment, the ISPR said.

Earlier, the rescue operation teams and police had to face hardships to reach the incident site and the ambulances could not reach the scene on time due to broken and uneven pathways. Many passengers died when they jumped out of train to save their lives after eruption of blaze. Later, rescue teams shifted critically burnt and injured passengers to hospitals.

District Emergency Officer Baqir Hussain told The News the rescuers promptly reached the incident site and teams from Liaquatpur, Ahmadpur East, Bahawalpur, Rahim Yar Khan and Khanpur took part in the joint rescue operation. Later, Railways Minister Sheikh Rasheed and Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar reached the Shaikh Zayed Hospital Rahim Yar Khan and visited the injured. The tragedy triggered many questions about the safety measures taken by Pakistan Railways to deal with any untoward incident.

The charred bodies of 60 victims would be identified only through their DNA test. The railways minister announced Rs1.5 million eachfor a dead and five lakh each for the injured.

Later on, speaking in Multan, Sheikh Rasheed offered special thanks to Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa for quickly dispatching his medical corps and air ambulance to shift the train victims to hospitals.

Talking to the media at Multan airport, he said many lives were saved due to immediate intervention by the army. He said army personnel performed quick rescue operation and helped the civil, rail administration largely. Sheikh Rasheed said the army airlifted nine victims from Liaquatpur to Multan Pak-Italian Modern Burns Centre.

The minister said the passengers were cooking food on a gas cylinder which exploded and caused a huge fire. He said the railway guard had also asked them not to use the cylinder in the moving train. He said each year at least 200,000 faithful gather at the Tableeghi Ijtema and they bring gas cylinders and stoves with them for cooking food. He admitted that it was a fault on the part of the railways staff that they did not stop the travellers from carrying cylinders on train. However, he added, in future such practices would be curbed strictly.

The minister claimed that the least number of train accidents took place during his tenure and he would present the record in this regard also. Sheikh Rasheed said Prime Minister Imran Khan had constituted an inquiry committee to establish the facts and stern action would be taken against responsible officials.

The tragic incident of Liaquatpur train fire also exposed the health facilities and infrastructure in remote region of south Punjab’s 11 districts. The plans of modern burns centres at district level were never materialised. The burns unit at Bahawalpur hospital awaits release of funds even after passage of 10 years.

Facilities for burns victims are available in Dera Ghazi Khan (10 beds), Rahim Yar Khan (20 beds), and Multan at PIMBC (68 beds).

Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi expressed sadness over the death and injuries to Tezgam Express passengers.

Our Lahore correspondents add: A surviving passenger said the fire was caused by electricity short-circuiting. Another passenger said that emergency chain of the train was not working as they pulled it time and again for stopping the train, but it did not work. Also, they complained that the fire extinguishing apparatus and agents placed in train and at the railway station were also not working.

Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar suspended his important official engagements as soon as he learnt about the tragic incident and reached Rahim Yar Khan. He inquired after the injured at the Shaikh Zayed Hospital and also reviewed treatment facilities over there. He announced setting up a burns unit at the Shaikh Zayed Hospital, RY Khan to deal with such emergencies in future. Later, he also visited Multan and met the accident victims at the Burns Hospital.

Earlier, he handed over his helicopter for shifting victims to hospitals. Provincial Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid also accompanied him. The CM was informed that the train accident took place at 6:26am and rescue, police, administration and other departments reached the site within 13 minutes and started relief activities.

According to official sources, 25 unidentified bodies had been handed over to the family members after conducting DNA test.

Family members of injured coming from Sindh should be provided with complete information along with necessary facilities, the CM directed.

On the direction of Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid, an emergency had been declared in government hospitals of Bahawalpur and Rahim Yar Khan districts to ensure best healthcare facilities to the injured of Tezgam Express incident.

Meanwhile, Rubina Nasir, Deputy Chief Commercial Manager, issued a notification, specifying instructions for the passengers.

According to the notification, available with The News, every passenger should carry his original CNIC and submit a photo copy of his/her CNIC at Raiwind/Lahore Station. Assistance from CMI/CI/TCR staff should be obtained to ensure submission of copy of CNIC.

It further directed that special precautions may be adopted through police checking that no explosive, dangerous and inflammable article was being carried by the passengers of Tableeghi Jamaat. Further, no extra passenger on train/coach would be allowed.

Pakistan Railways Chairman Sikandar Sultan Raja has also directed the Federal Government Inspector Railways (FGIR) to initiate an inquiry into the incident and a preliminary report, followed by a detailed inquiry report, should be presented on urgent basis.

According to a notification issued here on Thursday, a helpline for information about casualties and injured passengers has also been established at the PR headquarters on the direction of the chairman.

Citizens can contact these numbers for information: Multan division :0619200382 DCO Multan :0311-4403720 Hyderabad Inquiry :0300-3026200 Lahore control office:042-99201795 Sukkur control office:071-9310087 Karachi Inquiry:021-99213528 DCO Karachi :0346-8328023

Meanwhile, President Arif Alvi, Prime Minister Imran Khan, leaders of political parties and various ministers have expressed their deep grief and sorrow over the loss of precious lives in Tezgam Express fire incident.