RAMANATHAPURAM
Train services from Rameswaram island were affected for the fourth successive day on Sunday as gusty winds swept Pamban and Mandapam areas, automatically turning down the signal at Pamban rail bridge, connecting the island with the mainland by rail.
As operation of train services from Rameswaram became difficult due to the high-velocity wind, Madurai division of Southern Railway, as a precautionary measure, moved empty rakes of Rameswaram–Chennai Express (16852) and operated the train from Mandapam after transporting passengers from Rameswaram in buses.
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Madurai–Rameswaram Passenger was terminated at Mandpam. The railways operated empty rakes on the bridge, considering the safety of passengers. Rameswaram–Chennai Sethu Express (22662), which was scheduled to leave the island at 8.15 p.m., was stationed at Rameswaram. Officials said it would be operated from the island after the wind velocity subsided.
On Saturday, Sethu Express had left the island around 8.55 p.m. after suffering a delay of 30 minutes. Rameswaram–Kanniyakumari Express (22621), which was scheduled to leave at 8.55 p.m., left after a few minutes’ delay, the officials said.