‘We cheated death’; survivors recount chilling moments

MP  |  4 June 2023 | Kolkata: The survivors of the tragic rail accident on Friday that had snuffed out about 288 lives are finding it difficult to forget the devastations and bloodshed and consider the almighty’s grace for their lucky escape. 

Chittaranjan Bagha of Tollygunge in South Kolkata along with his wife was travelling aboard a B5 coach to meet their son who is pursuing his studies in Chennai. 

“I had gone to the pantry car ahead of coach B1 for fetching some water and was returning through the coaches. While at B3, there was a booming sound along with tremendous shaking of the train and I somehow managed to keep my balance by sitting down on the floor holding one of the seats. For a moment I thought whether it was an earthquake. I was desperate to reach my wife and when I reached coach B5, we realised that there has been an accident. We were rescued by some local people who broke the window to bring us out. It was as if we cheated death,” Bagha said. 

The couple were taken to Balasore Hospital for first aid and from there they hired an ambulance to reach the city. 

“My wife Purnima has sustained injuries in her head and suffered a fracture in her hand and is presently undergoing treatment at a private hospital on EM Bypass. Her condition is stable, I still cannot believe that we have been saved. It’s surely God’s blessing,“ he added. 

Sayantani Ghosh who was travelling with her 11-year-old daughter for meeting her husband in Chennai is still struggling to recover from the trauma. 

“I am suffering from pain in my entire body. Our coach got derailed by a deafening noise but luckily it did not turn turtle. The side door on the right-hand side was not opening and on the left, it seemed that there was a fire. 

The local people were telling us to get out by breaking the window but with my daughter, I was initially reluctant. Some of our fellow passengers who were in the same compartment helped us out. We somehow managed to hire a car and come back straight to our home,“ Ghosh said. 

The Picnic Garden resident is sceptical whether she will be again able to undertake a train journey with such a gruesome sight that she saw all around.

https://www.millenniumpost.in/bengal/we-cheated-death-survivors-recount-chilling-moments-520862