Services hit after falling piece of cloth causes fire on train

Suburban services of Western Railway were hit in the peak hours Thursday evening when a piece of cloth fell on its electricity supplying instrument causing a fire, a senior official said.

The incident took place around 7.50 pm between Bandra and Khar Road stations, and commuters were asked to get down from the train as a precautionary measures, the WR official said.

"A piece of cloth fell from Foot Over Bridge (FOB) on the Overhead Equipment (OHE) that supplies electric power to the engine coach of the local train. OHE caught fire and the train, going towards Virar, came to a halt as a result," he said.

The services resumed by 8.21 pm and there was no major disruption, claimed the official.

Some trains were running late by 15 to 20 minutes, he said.

PTI journalist Komal Panchmatia, who was travelling by the same train, said, "We heard an explosion-like sound, just above ladies coach, around 7.55 pm. The train was then a few minutes away from Khar railway station.

"Some women panicked as the train halted. The guards asked all women passengers to climb down as there was minor fire on the roof of the compartment," she said.

T N Dubey, a member of Divisional Railway Users Consultative Committee of WR, said, "This shows how vulnerable the safety and security situation is. This is a wake-up call for the concerned agencies.