QUETTA: At least 14 people were killed and over 100 injured when all the nine carriages of the Rawalpindi-bound Jaffar Express derailed near Aab-i-Gum area of Bolan district on Tuesday.

Five railway employees, including the driver of the train, and two women passengers were among the dead. The injured included women and children. Some of the injured are said to be in serious condition.

Carrying 350 passengers, the ill-fated train left the Quetta station at 8.30am and reached Kolpur station at 9.30am. After inspection of its brakes the train was allowed to resume its run.

After receiving information about the accident, rescue teams and security personnel rushed to the site. Two MI-17 helicopters of Pakistan Army also took part in the rescue operation. The injured were taken to the Civil Hospital and the Combined Military Hospital in Quetta and hospitals in Sibi and Mach.

A doctor in the Civil Hospital said that the hospital had received 12 bodies and 43 injured. He said majority of the dead suffered head injuries.

Sixty-four injured were shifted to the CMH.

According to the Chief Controller of Pakistan Railways in Quetta, Mohammad Kashif Khan, the train overshot after its brakes failed. Since by now it had begun its descent from a mountainous area to a valley below, the train caught speed and went out of the driver’s control.

Faiz Bugti, the PR’s divisional superintendent in Quetta, said that the brakes failed only after the train began the descent.

Mr Bugti ruled out the possibility of an act of terrorism behind the incident.

The federal Minister for Railways, Saad Rafiq, has ordered an inquiry into the accident.

The five railway employees who lost their lives in the incident were identified as Mohammad Ayub (driver), Iqbal Wasim (fireman), Qamar Abbas, Mohammad Rizwan and Amin Raisani.

Balochistan Governor Muhammad Khan Achakzai and Chief Minister Dr Abdul Malik Baloch expressed deep sorrow over the casualties in the train accident. They directed authorities concerned to provide all possible treatment facilities to the injured.

The chief minister himself supervised the rescue operation at Aab-i-Gum. He was accompanied by Commander of Southern Command, Lieutenant General Aamir Riaz, Inspector General of Frontier Corps Major General Sher Afgun, Chief Secretary Saifullah Chattah and other senior officials.

Talking to reporters, Malik Baloch said an inquiry into the incident would be conducted.

In reply to a question, he said the federal railway minister had the powers to conduct an inquiry and he was continuously in touch with him.

Our Staff Reporter in Lahore adds: A high-level PR committee has been constituted to hold a probe into the accident.

Headed by Federal Government Inspector of Railways (FGIR) Mian Mohammad Arshad, the committee will start its work at Aab-i-Gum station on Nov 19.

The committee will record the statements of witnesses and railway employees at the Quetta Divisional Superintendent’s office on Nov 20 and 21.

COMPENSATION: Pakistan Railways has announced compensation for victims of the derailment.

An announcement said that the heirs of the deceased would be paid Rs800,000 each and the injured would get Rs50,000 to Rs300,000, depending upon the nature of the injury.

Published in Dawn, November 18th, 2015