Derailment on D’puri-Hosur section; trains hit

COIMBATORE: A goods train derailed on the Dharmapuri-Hosur stretch of Bangalore railway division during the early hours of Friday.

Around six wagons of the train laden with fertilizers derailed between Marandahalli-Rayakottai railway stations around 2 am resulting in disruption of train traffic. Hundreds of people from Dharmapuri, Rayakottai, and Hosur, who travel to Bengaluru for work faced inconvenience. They were forced to take buses to reach their destinations. Following the incident, the Yesvantpur-Salem train was cancelled and several other trains were diverted.

The Karaikal-SMVT Bengaluru train and Ernakulam–KSR Bengaluru Express were diverted through Tirupattur and Krishnarajapuram, while SMVT Bengaluru-Nagercoil Express was diverted through Krishnarajapuram and Tirupattur. Of the total 42 wagons, 21 were laden with fertilizers and the remaining were empty. The train left Thoothukudi on Thursday evening and was bound for Bengaluru through Tiruchy, Salem, and Dharmapuri districts. Soon after the incident, more than 100 railway staff from Salem, Dharmapuri, and Bengaluru limits rushed to the spot and commenced restoration works.

The loco pilot had encountered poor visibility near the Odayandahalli railway gate due to smoke. Then, the train was brought to a halt in a signal, when the wagons came off the track. The derailed wagons were then delinked and the train chugged off to Salem. Restoration works on the track, which commenced at 3 am stretched beyond evening, resulting in disruption of train traffic.