RailEnquiry

BIKANER: Panic prevailed among the passengers of the Bhatinda -Jodhpur passenger train when its engine caught fire between Palana and Udramsar railway station, almost 28 kms from here on Tuesday morning. At least 600 passengers boarded in the train remained stranded for almost 4 hours. Thankfully no injuries or causality was reported as the fire from the engine was doused by the railway and district rescue team.

At 7.30 am when the train coming from Bhatinda departed for Palana railway station, the two drivers of the engine spotted some smoke coming out of the engine. Expecting the worst, one of the drivers applied the emergency brakes. When the train stopped almost 28 kms away from Bikaner railway station the whole engine got fire and the two drivers jumped off the train, according to the railway authorities.

"Raising an alarm the guard of the train intimated the nearby station master who later informed about it to the Bikaner railway station. Without waiting for the relief wagon to come at the spot the drivers with the help of passengers started putting water and mud on the train to ensure the fire may not go towards the passenger wagon which was next to the engine," said a senior police officer of the GRP police who rushed to the spot.

The Bikaner district administration all rushed two fire brigade vehicles from Deshnok and Palana town which started extinguished the fire, officials said.

Hues and cries of the passengers were witnessed, however they were relieved when realized that fire did not spread out to the wagons.

"Though it took almost an hour to douse the fire, the passengers were stranded as the engine on fire was badly damaged. It took the railways almost 4 hours to send an extra engine for the train. Finally at 11.45 when the engine arrived, the train left for Jodhpur," said an officer with the district police.

Meanwhile, the primary reports suggested that the leakage in fuel was the main reason behind the fire. "A probe of the fire incident would be carried out by the senior authorities of the Jodhpur division of north western railways," said an officer with the north western railways(NWR).