Relief operations underway at Kerala's Karukutty station where 12 coaches of express train derailed

KOCHI: Repair and relief operations are being carried out in full-swing in Kerala's Karukutty station where 12 coaches of the Thiruvananthapuram-Mangaluru Express (Train no. 16347) derailed at 2.55am on Sunday.

"Train services through the route would resume partially by 4 pm, senior railways officials told TOI. Continuous rainfall in the region where the derailment occured has delayed the repair work.

KSRTC has arranged regular bus services between Thrissur and Ernakulam for passengers who were stranded due to the derailment, the state transport authorities have said. For Angamaly, 43 additional buses were provided in the morning apart from the other diverting enroute buses.

PK Mishra, additional general manager of the Southern Railway, told media that there was no evidence of sabotage activity at Karukutty and that a crack on the railway track might have caused the accident. However, investigations are still on for the specific reason of mishap.

Earlier in the day, the authorities had arranged several special passenger trains between Ernakulam Junction and Thiruvananthapuram Central at frequent intervals for the affected passengers. Two special trains will also run later in the day, said Thiruvananthapuram railway authorities.

Authorities have launched helplines: 0471-2320012 and 9746769960. Karukutty is situated about 30 kilometres away from Ernakulam.