GUJAR KHAN, Nov 9: Eleven people were injured when a train en route from Rawalpindi to Sialkot derailed near Gujar Khan station following a brake failure on Sunday, officials and the locomotive driver said.

The Sialkot Express developed the fault some time after leaving the Ghungrila station, about 8km from the site of derailment, according to Naseer Ali, the locomotive driver who himself suffered injuries during the accident.

Talking to this reporter at the Tehsil Headquarters (THQ) hospital, Mr Ali said when the train failed to stop at the designated Gujar Khan station at 4:10pm, an automatic rail system was engaged that diverted it to a ‘dead track’ meant to stop trains with faulty braking mechanism.

The ‘dead track’ has a mound of sand-mixed soil at its end and the overshooting trains plough into the heap, ultimately coming to a halt.

However, Mr Ali said when the train hit the mound at an uncontrollable speed its engine was hurled into the air and landed in a 50-foot deep ditch behind it. The first bogie followed the locomotive and crashed onto it.

Officials and rescuers at the accident site told Dawn that at least 10 passengers and a man walking along the railway track suffered multiple injuries.

The passer-by, Abid Ali, was given initial medical treatment at the THQ hospital and then shifted to Rawalpindi, where doctors described his condition as ‘out of danger’. Other casualties were taken to the hospital in Gujar Khan and some of them were discharged after treatment.

After the accident, people residing in the vicinity rushed to the spot and helped the passengers leave the derailed bogies.

Teams of Rescue 1122 emergency service also reached Gujar Khan from Rawalpindi to shift of the victims to the hospital, while the local police led by Mirza Jameel Baig cordoned off the site to preserve evidence and secure the passengers’ belongings.

Later, SSP Operations Sardar Maqsood Khan and district authorities of the Pakistan Railway also arrived at the spot. PR Divisional Superintendent Abdul Jabbar examined the accident site and ordered for the constitution of an enquiry team to find out the causes of the derailment.

Some insiders told this reporter that the passengers suffered injuries because of improper construction of the ramp-type structure and its proximity to a ditch, however, the PR’s inspector of works dispelled this impression.