Twenty-two wagons of a train in India with about 1.000 people on board were cut off from the engine and started rolling backwards after traveling 12 kilometers before being stopped by placing stones on the railway tracks, the Indian Railways announced yesterday.
"Something horrible could have happened and that was prevented thanks to the vigilant staff," said J. P. Misra, representative of the National Railway Company of India.
"Everyone (in the ministry) is amazed and shocked," he said, adding that no passengers had been injured.
The incident took place on Saturday night in Titlagarth in the state of Odisha in eastern India.
Seven employees of the railway company who did not follow the regulations were made available, while an investigation has been launched to determine the cause of the detachment of the wagons from the train engine.