Fire breaks out on the roof of a Mumbai local

Mumbai, Oct 09: A minor fire is said have erupted on the roof of a Mumbai local train on Wednesday. The flames and thick smoke was were coming from a Pantograph, a retractable component which maintains contact with the high voltage overhead line.

The overhead equipment tripped on the Harbour line at Vashi station in a down local, news agency ANI reported.

The alert railway staff quickly swung into action and doused the flames.

There are no reports of any injuries or casualties. All services on the Harbour line are normal now.

The overhead electricity line which powers the trains has 25,000 Volts. A pantograph is a retractable diamond-shaped frame which remains in contact with the hi-tension overhead line and powers the engine.

On May 11, a fire broke out in a Rajdhani Express near Khantapada, Odisha. The blaze had erupted in the power car of New Delhi-Bhubaneswar Rajdhani Express.

In May itself, a fire broke out in the engine and generator room of Kamakhya Express in Uttar Pradesh's Kailahat in Mirzapur. Wasting no time, the driver separated the generator room and the parcel coach from the train after the incident.

On April 28, nearly 600 passengers onboard a passenger train heading from Bangarpet to Krantivira Sangolli Rayanna (Bengaluru City) railway station had a narrow escape when one of the coaches caught fire due to a short circuit in electrical equipment beneath it. No one was hurt or injured in the fire followed by billowing thick smoke, which took nearly 20 minutes to douse.

In May 2018, the WAP 4 loco of train 12810 Howrah-Mumbai Mail caught fire and resulted in the death of the assistant loco pilot and injury to loco pilot between Talni and Dhamangaon on Wardha - Badnera section. The enquiry stated that the fire was due to a defect in the loco.