'I was asleep when horror happened'

FAHAD SHAIKH

The compartment, which had around 20 commuters, was a bogie away from the motorman's cabin. I saw
three to four women in the adjacent compartment. I went to sleep as soon as the train started.

The accident
Minutes after the train had left Mulund railway station at 10.35 am, I heard a huge thud and a sudden jerk brought the train to a halt.

I heard people crying for help and got up to find the female commuters in the adjacent compartment shouting.

A few other male passengers and I got down from teh train and saw the enormity of the disaster. I helped the women out of the train. The motorman's cabin was crushed beneath the pipeline.

Onlookers said that a few commuters, who had been hanging out of the second-class compartment door, had sustained injuries, as they had been thrown out when the train jerked.

Clicking pictures
People were clicking pictures on their cellphones and I too, took a few pictures. A few minutes later, the police and rescue workers arrived at the spot. I did not hang around and took a rickshaw to my office. For the next hour, I fielded frantic calls from my family who learnt of the accident through television channels.

This was the first time I had witnessed an accident from such close quarters. I hope I will never have to do so again.

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