Mumbai: Eight services were cancelled on Tuesday and 15 were delayed by over an hour on the Harbour Line when a CST-bound local was detained at Kurla station for over 55 minutes. The glitch-hit train had a cascading effect on evening peak hour movement, during which a rooftop traveller was electrocuted.
A.K. Singh, PRO, CR, told The Hindu that the Electric Multiple Unit (EMU) rake Vashi 38 UP headed for Mumbai CST was detained at Kurla station due to technical issues and had to be terminated and sent to the Kurla carshed. The rake was detained from 3.56 pm to 4.51 pm.
Sources in the Central Railway (CR) said there was a chance of derailment due to the technical snag, but the motorman managed to bring it to a halt in time.
“A break block fell from a local train at Kurla station and the break rod damaged the rail check present along the tracks. This made the train stop and blocked its progress. We had to work to clear the track. It took nearly 20 minutes to repair the track,” a railway official said.
Panic station
With glitches being discovered as evening peak hour began, officials said the situation bordered on panic. The technical snag was first identified as an Over Head Equipment (OHE) issue. No sooner was this rectified, when a pantograph problem was reported. Then, the damaged tracks were noticed. “We were under tremendous stress as one problem after another surfaced. We somehow managed to remove the rake and send it to the carshed,” an official said. They added that the rake was retrofitted.
“The train broke down between Tilak Nagar and Kurla while travelling towards CST. I was travelling in the other direction, and saw passengers alighting and walking towards the station. The CR should do something to avoid such situations,” Aakansha Bajpai, who was travelling from Andheri to Vashi, said.
Tehmina Sabuwala, travelling from Andheri to Dockyard Road, added, “There were no announcements at the station, and passengers were confused. All trains were delayed and many services were cancelled, but there were no proper announcements.”
As the trains began running again, a rooftop traveller was electrocuted at Govandi, resulting in the train being detained for 15 minutes as he was rescued. The Government Railway Police (GRP) said the victim was yet to be identified. He has been admitted to Shatabdi Hospital nearby, and is said to be critical.
