Amritsar train tragedy: As Ravana's effigy burns, train smashes into crowd killing 59 - visuals from a horrific night

A speeding train on its way from Pathankot to Amritsar smashed into a massive crowd on the railway tracks watching a burning Ravana effigy during Dussehra fireworks in Punjab’s Amritsar on Friday at around 7 pm local time, killing 59 people and injuring over  60, according to latest information. Children are said to be amongst the dead.

Outrage and sadness poured out as video clips surfaced of the gut wrenching moment when the train rams into the crowd - almost at the exact moment when the Ravana effigy erupts into a huge ball of flame in the distance, just across the tracks.

Later, as night fell, more pictures and videos came in from our network of stringers and reporters in Amritsar. In some, relatives wait for news of the injured; in some others, loved ones receive the bodies of the dead.

Hospitals are struggling to cope with the sudden crush of victims, eye witnesses are saying many bodies are lying on the floor of the hospital because there’s nowhere else to keep them. While tears flow, politicos spar and the shock sinks in, here are some snapshots that tell the story of a horrific night marking one of India’s worst train mishaps.

Visuals: 101 Reporters