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Wednesday 21 October 2009

Deadly train collision in India

NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- At least nine people died and 15 were injured as two major passengers trains collided in northern India on Wednesday, a railway official said.

Rescue operations were under way, said Anant Swaroop, spokesman for India's northern railway, and officials feared the death toll would climb. It was not immediately clear how many people were trapped in the wreckage.

The Goa Express slammed into the stationary Mewar Express early Wednesday in the city of Mathura. Bodies were pulled out from a wrecked car of the Mewar Express, said Aditya Verma, a senior police official in Mathura. The car had a special compartment for women, disabled passengers, cargo and train guards, he said.

The Goa Express, bound for New Delhi from the western coastal state of Goa, was apparently running on the same track as the Mewar, which shuttles between New Delhi and Udaipur, in western Rajasthan state. Both trains have stops in Mathura.

A witness told CNN's sister station CNN-IBN that the driver of the Goa Express changed tracks at the last minute. Another witness described the massive thud when the trains collided and passengers on upper berths came flying down.

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