A passenger train has derailed in southern India, killing at least 17 people and injuring 100.
But there are fears the number of dead could rise as seven of the carriages fell into flood waters caused by heavy rains in the area in recent days.
The accident happened early in the morning in the state of Andhra Pradesh, south of the state capital Hyderabad.
Several people are said to be trapped inside the submerged carriages making it harder for rescuers to reach them.
Each carriage was carrying between 50 to 60 passengers.
"The first of the rescue teams have reached the site of the accident," a spokeswoman for Indian Railways, Esther Kar, is quoted as saying by the Associated Press.
"They are throwing ropes into the coaches, so that people can hold onto these till they are rescued," she added.
Army and air force personnel are also helping with the rescue operation.
Many of the injured have been moved to nearby hospitals.
The BBC's Omer Farooq who is at the crash site say many of the victims were holidaymakers travelling to celebrate Diwali, the festival of lights, which takes place on Tuesday.
Srinivas Rao and his cousin Gangadhar were travelling on the train with their parents and managed to escape.
"But we don't know what's happened to our parents," they told the BBC.
The Delta Express derailed near the town of Veligonda, about 30km (18 miles) south of Hyderabad, early on Saturday after flood waters washed away a part of the track.
Heavy rains
Rains have lashed southern India for more than a week, claiming more than 100 lives in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
India's state-run railways system carries more than 13 million passengers a day.
It has one of the world's largest rail networks, but also has a poor safety record.
About 300 rail accidents are reported every year, resulting in a high number of casualties.
Earlier this month, at least 16 people died and dozens were injured in a train crash in Madhya Pradesh state.
PHOTO CAPTION
File picture of a train accident in India. (AFP)