85 Dead, 200 Missing as Train Derails on Bridge
NEW DELHI — A train crossing a bridge derailed today, plunging six passenger cars into a lake and leaving three dangling from the overpass. Officials said 85 people died and 200 were missing.
About 500 people were taken to nearby hospitals, said officials in the towns of Quilon and Trivandrum, in southern India.
Hospital officials in Quilon said 75 victims were admitted there and 25 others in serious condition were rushed by ambulance to a larger hospital in Trivandrum, about 30 miles away. The officials said the rest were treated and released.
The accident occurred as the 14-car Island Express was crossing a bridge near Quilon in the state of Kerala at 1:15 p.m., police said. The cause of the accident was not immediately known.
The United News of India said villagers, some in small boats, rescued about 100 people from the water immediately after the crash.
The derailing occurred during the monsoon season of heavy rain, and the downpour in Kerala is reported to be the worst in years.
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