At least 21 killed, 30 injured in Mumbai station stampede amid heavy rain
A rush-hour stampede at a railway station in Mumbai killed at least twenty one people and over 30 seriously injured after heavy rain this morning, as a crowd tried to leave a narrow foot over-bridge connecting two busy train stations.
Elphinstone station is usually crowded during peak hours as it caters to office-goers in the Lower Parel area. The station, on the Western Line of the Mumbai suburban rail network, also connects to Parel station on the Central line.
Police said it was triggered by a rumour that a pedestrian bridge was collapsing, sparking chaos as people surged forwards to flee.
Tanaji Pawar, a spokesman for Mumbai’s disaster management unit, warned that the death toll “is likely to go up”.
The injured have been taken to a nearby hospital and senior railway officials are at the scene.
“Many were waiting in the rain. There were too many people in a cramped space. When people were trying to rush to their trains, the stampede happened,” said railway spokesperson Anil Saxena.
