2017 Mumbai stampede

On 29 September 2017, a stampede broke out at the sub-urban Elphinstone Road railway station (now officially known as Prabhadevi) in Mumbai, India.[4] At least 23 people were killed and 39 others were injured in the stampede.[5] The incident took place between the Parel railway station and Elphinstone road railway station.

Elphinstone Road Stampede
Date29 September 2017
LocationElphinstone Road railway station
Mumbai, India
Coordinates19.007533°N 72.835976°E / 19.007533; 72.835976
CauseOvercrowding of Pedestrian foot over bridge
Deaths23[1][2] to 27[3]
Non-fatal injuries50
InquiriesHigh-level Enquiry
InquestChief Safety Officer of Western Railways

Government of Maharashtra

Ministry of Railways

Incident

On the morning of 29 September 2017, around 10:30 am local time, a stampede erupted on a footbridge at the suburban Elphinstone road railway station in Mumbai which connects two of the city's major suburban lines.[6][7]

Cause

The incident occurred during the morning rush hour at Elphinstone road station, when four trains arrived simultaneously at the station.[8][9] It was further raining at the time and there were already numerous people crammed into the narrow bridge.[10][11] Someone may have slipped and fell when passengers resumed their travel after the rain, leading to the stampede.[12]

A rumour that the pedestrian bridge was collapsing may have caused the passengers to surge forwards to flee.[13] According to a witness, the situation worsened as police and emergency officials did not respond immediately or enforce crowd control measures.[13]

At least 23 people died[14] and 39 others were injured in the stampede. According to a hospital's official, most of the people who died suffered from chest compression and haemorrhage due to injuries.[15]

Police investigation

"The overbridge of Elphinstone station was overcrowded and due to rain it got slippery too. This caused panic and resulted in the stampede," said Atul Shrivastav, IG of the Railway Protection Force.[16] A case of Accidental Death (ADR), was registered at the Dadar Police Station. S. Jaykumar, Additional Commissioner of Police (Central Region), Mumbai also stated that overcrowding was a factor.[12]

Reactions

Piyush Goyal, the Minister of Railways, announced a compensation of ₨.10 lakh or about $15,200 for the victims.[5]

President of India, Ram Nath Kovind expressed grief over the "loss of lives in the stampede in Mumbai".[17] Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi expressed his condolences to "all those who have lost their lives due to the stampede in Mumbai", in a tweet. .[18]

Venkaiah Naidu, the Vice President; Devendra Fadnavis, Chief Minister of Maharashtra; Mamata Banerjee, Chief Minister of Bengal[19] and opposition leader Rahul Gandhi also expressed condolences over the deaths caused by the stampede.[20]

Shiv Sena called the stampede "a public massacre of the people by the government".[21]

Many Indians took to social media and called out the government for spending on projects such as a new bullet train from Mumbai to Ahmedabad in Gujarat, instead of focusing on basic infrastructure.[11][22] Many media reports criticised the infrastructure in the station and reported the incident as a tragedy which was waiting to happen.[23][24][25][26][27] MNS chief Raj Thackeray warned PM that he would not allow a single brick to be placed for the bullet train in Mumbai, until the infrastructure of local railways was made better.[28][29]

In the aftermath, railway minister Piyush Goyal said that the government has ordered a probe into the incident.[30] He also ordered a safety and capacity audit of all foot over-bridges at suburban stations across Mumbai.[31]

In February 2018, the Indian Army opened three new Bailey bridge footbridges at Elphinstone Road, Currey Road and Ambivli. These were erected quickly, in response to the stampede.[32]

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References
  1. "Death toll in Ephinstone stampede in Mumbai rises to 23". The Hindu Business Line. 29 September 2017.
  2. "Mumbai Prabhadevi Station Stampede LIVE: 22 Dead, Shiv Sena Calls It a 'Massacre'". News18.com. 29 September 2017.
  3. "Elphinstone Station Stampede: 27 people dead, more than 30 injured in Mumbai". ABP News. 29 September 2017.
  4. Zanane, Anant R; Marwaha, Nonika (29 September 2017). "22 Dead, Many Injured in Stampede Near Mumbai's Elphinstone Station". NDTV.
  5. "Elphinstone Road station stampede: 22 dead, 39 hurt; government announces compensation, orders probe". The Times of India. 29 September 2017.
  6. Kumar, Hari (29 September 2017). "Stampede at Mumbai Railway Station Kills at Least 22". The New York Times. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  7. Kumar, Nikhil (29 September 2017). "Mumbai stampede kills 22, injures 35 at train station". CNN. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  8. "22 Dead, Many Injured in Stampede Near Mumbai's Elphinstone Station". NDTV.com. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  9. Tripathy, Rajendra Jadhav and Devidutta. "Stampede in Mumbai kills at least 22". IN. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  10. "Mumbai railway station stampede kills 22 amid heavy rain". BBC. 29 September 2017. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  11. Safi, Michael (29 September 2017). "Mumbai railway station stampede kills at least 22". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  12. "Mumbai stampede: 22 killed, over 39 injured". The Hans India.
  13. Boyle, Danny (29 September 2017). "Mumbai station stampede kills at least 22 amid rumour bridge was collapsing". The Telegraph. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  14. Chaubey, Vedika (30 September 2017). "Elphinstone stampede: death toll climbs to 23". The Hindu.
  15. Shelar, Jyoti (29 September 2017). "Crushed: What happened at Mumbai's Elphinstone Road railway station". The Hindu. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  16. "Mumbai Prabhadevi Station Stampede LIVE: 22 Dead, Shiv Sena Calls It a 'Massacre'". 29 September 2017.
  17. "India: At least 22 killed in Mumbai station stampede". Al Jazeera. 29 September 2017. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  18. "PM Modi Condoles Stampede Incident Near Mumbai's Elphinstone Station". NDTV. 29 September 2017.
  19. "Stampede at Mumbai's Elphinstone railway station". The Times of India. 29 September 2017.
  20. "Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, PM Narendra Modi condole Mumbai stampede deaths". The Economic Times. 29 September 2017.
  21. "22 dead, 35 injured in stampede at Mumbai's Elphinstone Road station". The Hindustan Times. 29 September 2017. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  22. "Mumbai stampede: No need for bullets, callousness kills". The Times of India. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  23. "Indifference, callousness and lack of accountability caused the Elphinstone station disaster". The Hindustan Times. 29 September 2017. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  24. "A Letter, 100 Tweets Had Warned About Mumbai Bridge Where 22 Were Killed". NDTV.com. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  25. "Mumbai stampede tragedy could have been prevented". Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  26. Pai, Madhav. "The Mumbai rail stampede was waiting to happen. Here's how we can prevent a similar tragedy". Scroll.in. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  27. "Elphinstone Road station stampede: Behind the tragedy, large-scale neglect of infrastructure". The Indian Express. 30 September 2017. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  28. Nair, Arun (30 September 2017). "Mumbai Stampede: PM Modi 'Liar', Won't Allow Bullet Trains in Mumbai, Says Raj Thackeray". NDTV.
  29. Kumar, Ashna (30 September 2017). "Raj Thackeray threatens Modi's bullet train dream, says will stall project". India Today.
  30. Eloise Stevens, Vidhi Doshi (29 September 2017). "Stampede at Indian train station kills at least 22". The Washington Post. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  31. Ghadyalpatil, Abhiram (29 September 2017). "Elphinstone station stampede kills 22, govt order probe, safety audit of foot overbridges". www.livemint.com/. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  32. "Built by the Army, Elphinstone Road foot-overbridge inaugurated by a flower vendor". The Times of India. 27 February 2018.
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