The express train derailment which killed at least 34 people was caused by missing fishplates and a damaged track, a preliminary probe report has said, even as officials are not ruling out the possibility of sabotage in the major accident in Pakistan’s Sindh province. The Hazara Express train travelling from Karachi to Rawalpindi derailed on Sunday in Nawabshah district near the Sarhari Railway Station, 275 kilometres from the provincial capital Karachi.
“Missing fishplates and a damaged track caused the derailment of the Hazara Express, the preliminary report was quoted as stating by the Dawn newspaper on Tuesday.
“After checking from all the aspects, we came to (the) conclusion that (the) accident took place due to fresh rail broken and fishplates missing,” said the report released by the six-member Pakistan Railways inquiry team on Monday.
The team also identified the skidding of the train’s locomotive as another reason behind the derailment. The report says the train engine had left the site without examination by senior subordinates.
However, some railway officials are not ruling out the possibility of sabotage in the accident. Moreover, “little hitting spots” were found on the iron fishplates and wooden terminal beyond the accident point.
