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Odisha train accident: Balasore hospitals turn into war-zones amid tragedy
Hospitals in Odisha turn into war zones amid tragedy after Odisha train accident

Odisha train accident: Balasore hospitals turn into war-zones amid tragedy

By Snehadri Sarkar
Jun 04, 2023
10:41 am
What's the story

The Balasore District Hospital and Soro Government Hospital in Odisha looked like war zones soon after three trains collided on Friday—in one of the most horrific train accidents—as authorities began rushing the injured to these facilities. Injured passengers were reportedly seen lying on stretchers in the corridors, with rooms bursting with extra beds propped up to care for the unending stream of wounded individuals.

Context

Why does this story matter?

Nearly 290 individuals died, and over 900 people sustained injuries in the tragic train accident in Balasore. "Around 7pm (Friday), 10-12 coaches of the Shalimar-Chennai Coromandel Express derailed near Balasore and fell on the opposite track," revealed an Indian Railways spokesperson. Within a few seconds, a Yeswanthpur-Howrah train collided with those derailed coaches resulting in the derailment of three-four of its coaches, they added.

Details

Hospitals in Balasore overcrowded after tragic train accident

Most of the victims after the tragedy were reportedly rushed to the Balasore District Hospital and Soro Government Hospital, with medical staff running from one over-crowded room to the next, trying to make arrangements amid scarce supplies for hours. A major hurdle for the medical staff has been communicating with injured passengers, as most of them reportedly didn't speak Hindi or Odia.

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Heart-wrenching scenes at morgues

Meanwhile, the hospital morgues were equally overrun with piles of white shrouds as family members kept arriving throughout the day and tearfully searching for their loved ones. "With train services canceled or delayed because of the accident on a major railway trunk route, getting to Balasore has been a problem," Hindustan Times quoted a state official saying.

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Visuals from outside a hospital in Balasore

Further information

Never seen such chaos: Medical personnel's reaction amid rush

Balasore District Hospital's Additional District Medical Officer (ADMO), Dr. Mrutunjay Mishra, stated, "I'm in the profession for many decades, but have never seen such chaos in my life." "All of a sudden 251 accident injured persons rushed into our hospital and we were not at all prepared. Our staff worked all through the night and provided first aid to all," Mishra added.

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Additional doctors, ambulances deployed in Bahanaga, Soro, Balasore

On Saturday, the Odisha government officials stated that they strengthened the medical assistance services by deploying 50 additional doctors, 45 mobile health teams, and 200 ambulances in Bahanaga, Soro, and Balasore. Furthermore, the directors of health services and blood safety and three additional health department directors were also stationed at Balasore to correspond with the health units.

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Visuals from inside morgue after Balasore train accident