At least 24 dead, more than 300 rescued after twin train derailments in India

Two Indian passenger trains lay next to each other following a derailment after they were hit by flash floods on a bridge outside the town of Harda in Madhya Pradesh state on August 5, 2015. (AFP/Getty Images)

At least 24 people died and hundreds were rescued after two passenger trains derailed nearly side by side as they crossed a bridge in central India late Tuesday night. Only minutes earlier, a flash flood hit the same spot where the derailments occurred, A.K. Mittal, a senior railway officer told the Associated Press.
Both trains derailed near town of Harda in Madhya Pradesh state, the AP reported. Six coaches and the engine of the Kamayani Express, which was en route to Mumbai, derailed first. Then shortly thereafter four coaches of the Janata Express heading in the opposite direction derailed. Officials report that at least two of the coaches have been partially submerged into the Machak River. A train had crossed the bridge over the same culvert just minutes before and prior to the flash flood that damaged the train tracks.

Mittal told NDTV, an Indian broadcasting network, that the flash flood shifted the soil, causing the culvert and the tracks to collapse.

Indian officials stand next to two passenger trains on top of each other following a derailment after they were hit by flash floods on a bridge outside the town of Harda in Madhya Pradesh state on August 5, 2015. (AFP/Getty Images)

The AP reports that more than 300 people have been rescued. The Times of India put the number of fatalities as high as 28. Kiren Rijiju told the Times that the total number of casualties is likely to be high. Local TV reports cited by the Times stated that both trains had been overfilled with passengers.

Rail accidents are common in India because the railway system is poorly maintained despite being one of the world’s largest, according to the AP.

India Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted that his “prayers [are] with the injured.”