Panchayat member averts train mishap

Driver Sakthivel stopped the Dadar Express train, proceeding to Tirunelveli, a few kilometres before the spot where the crack was discovered in the Karur-Dindigul section

Railway workers repairing the damaged Karur railway track near NGO colony in Dindigul on Monday. Photo: G. Karthikeyan

The timely alert by a panchayat ward member averted a train accident in the Karur-Dindigul section here on Monday.

Seelapadi panchayat ward member Karuppaiah noticed a crack on the track near NGO Colony here while heading towards his farm in the area.

He waved down the Dadar Express, proceeding to Tirunelveli, with his “lungi”.

Driver Sakthivel stopped the Express train a few kilometres before the spot where the crack was discovered. The railway police and a technical team rushed to the spot.

"The timely alert (by Mr.Karuppaiah) prevented a major accident," said railway police officials. Train services in the Karur-Dindigul section were temporarily disrupted.

Earlier, the Mysore-Tuticorin Express passed the spot before the crack was noticed, and reached Dindigul station around 6.15 a.m. The technical team found that the bolts fastening the rails had come loose.

The track was subsequently welded and reinforced with fish plates.

Later, the Tiruneveli-Erode Passenger was allowed to go around 11 a.m.

Railway officials identified fluctuating climate as the cause of the crack.