At least 30 people were killed and many feared dead after a train derailed in the rain-battered southern Indian province of Andhra Pradesh on Saturday. State officials carrying out rescue work said the accident happened in the early hours of Saturday, when five cars of the derailed passenger train hurtled into a river in rain-hit Nalgonda district. Incessant rain in the district some 80 kilometers south of state capital Hyderabad has caused flooding of highways and train tracks. Andhra Pradesh has been pummeled by heavy rains over the past week causing a number of deaths in rain-related mishaps. "At least 21 of the 30 killed have been identified. We fear the fatalities could mount as nearly 100 people are still trapped in the cars submerged in water", FR Michael, spokesperson South-Central Railway told the Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa. According to Esther Kar, spokeswoman of the Indian Railways, rain-water from a nearby Ramasamudram reservoir had overflowed and submerged the train tracks, causing the accident. She said 104 people been injured while 1,800 had been rescued. Heavy rains were hampering efforts by army and state rescue units to save survivors. Army helicopters were airlifting survivors who had climbed onto the roofs of the partially submerged coaches. --more 1353 Local Time 1053 GMT
