Odisha train crash: Joe Biden said – My heart is broken, Jinping is also very sad

Washington/Beijing. US President Joe Biden on Saturday expressed his condolences over the train crash in Odisha and said he was deeply saddened by the sad news that more than 280 people had died. The accident between three trains in Balasore district of Odisha is one of the worst rail accidents in India for almost three decades. At least 288 people died in this accident and more than 1,100 were injured.

Biden said in a statement, “Jill Biden (First Lady) and I are deeply saddened by the sad news of the fatal train crash in India.” Our prayers are with those who lost loved ones in this terrible incident and many were injured.

Biden said, “The United States and India share deep bonds rooted in family and cultural ties, and that’s what binds our two countries together.” In this hour of mourning, all of America stands with the Indian people and mourns. As the relief work continues, our hearts go out to the Indians who lost their lives in the accident.

Several world leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, French President Emmanuel Macron and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, expressed their heartfelt condolences to the families of those killed in the train crash. Chinese President Xi Jinping sent separate condolence messages to President Draupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the fatal train crash.

In his message, Xi said he was shocked to learn of the accident, which claimed many lives. On behalf of the Chinese government and people, Jinping expressed sincere condolences to the victims and bereaved families and wished the injured a speedy recovery. Chinese Premier Li Qiang also sent a condolence message to Prime Minister Modi.

Significantly, the accident happened after Shalimar-Chennai Central Coromandel Express and Bengaluru-Howrah Express trains derailed and collided with a freight train in Balasore district at around 7pm on Friday. There were approximately 2,500 passengers on the two passenger trains. 21 coaches were derailed and badly damaged in the crash, trapping hundreds of passengers. Both passenger trains were traveling at high speed and experts cited this as one of the main reasons for the high number of casualties.

After the train accident, around 90 trains were cancelled, while the route of 46 trains was changed. Most of the trains affected by the accident belong to the southern and southeastern railway areas. Citing the report available through Saturday afternoon, an official said 288 passengers died in the crash. At the same time, the condition of the 56 injured is serious.

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Tags: Joe Biden, Train accident in Odisha, Xi Jinping