Visakhapatnam: A fire broke out in an AC coach of an empty express train at the Visakhapatnam railway station on Sunday. Lack of passengers on board averted a major disaster to the train that earlier ran from Korba to Visakhapatnam.
The train was about to be moved to the coaching depot. The fire affected coaches B6, B7, and M1. It appears the fire was caused by the presence of some inflammatory material in one of these compartments. The B-7 coach bore the brunt.
Railway officials said the fire was controlled by breaking the windows and spraying water. The affected coaches were detached from the train to prevent the fire from spreading further.
The train arrived at the station at 6:30am and was parked on Platform 4. The fire was noticed around 9:20am in the B-7 coach. Thick smoke was seen billowing from this coach while the fire spread to coaches B-6 and M-1. Fire services personnel along with the GRP, RPF and city police responded swiftly to the situation. The fire was brought under control by 11:10am.
Police Commissioner Sankabrata Bagchi said the fire originated in the B-7 coach, possibly due to the presence of some inflammable materials or short circuit. An investigation has been ordered.
Divisional railway manager Saurabh Prasad said the train was to be moved to the coach maintenance depot after the morning rush hour. An RPF personnel noticed smoke from the B-7 coach. The same rake was scheduled to run the Visakhapatnam-Kadapa Tirumala Express, departing at 2pm. The service operated as planned, after the damaged coach was replaced, he said.
