Mumbai's iconic monorail service came to a halt on Sunday for nearly three hours due to power failure, leaving 11 people including a train captain stranded inside near Bhakti Park in Wadala area.
Mumbai's iconic monorail service came to a halt on Sunday for nearly three hours due to power failure, leaving 11 people including a train captain stranded inside near Bhakti Park in Wadala area.
None of the passengers was injured in the incident and they were evacuated safely by fire personnel who used snorkels to bring them down to ground from the elevated track. The incident prompted Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to order an inquiry under Principal Secretary (Urban Development) According to Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), one of the implementing agencies of the project, the services got disrupted due to tripping of power at around 8 AM.
"The services experienced a power disruption between Bhakti Park and Mysore Colony stations at around 7.58 AM as the trains were not receiving the 750V DC electricity that powers the trains," MMRDA said in a statement. Due to this, two trains -- one heading towards Bhakti Park station and the other leaving from there -- got stuck there.
The power could be restored for a short while at around 8.20 AM following which one of the trains reached Bhakti Park station. The other train got stuck again between Bhakti Park and Mysore Colony stations, as the power tripped once again, and another train could not be brought to rescue the stranded train and hence the fire brigade was called to conduct train-to-ground passenger evacuation, the release said.
A Fire brigade official said they got call about the incident at around 9 AM and rescued 11 people in subsequent rescue operation. "We got a call at around 9 AM about the incident and immediately our rescue team reached the spot and we have managed to rescue 11 people," a fire brigade official said.
All passengers were safely evacuated with no injuries or medical emergencies reported. Power was restored at about 10:45 am. The stranded train was able to move on its own power, he said. The official added that services resumed after 12 noon, after tests and trials were conducted for the entire system including movement of trains without passengers.
Taking note of the incident, Fadnavis posted on twitter: "Looking into Mumbai Monorail breakdown incident. Appointed Principal Secretary (Urban Development) to immediately initiate an enquiry." The phase I of the Mumbai monorail became operational in February last year between Wadala Depot and Chembur in the metropolis. It is the first such service in the country. Meanwhile, BJP leader Kirit Somaiya visited the spot and criticised the disaster management facility over the incident.
"This incident is an eye opener. This shows that there is no disaster management facility made available either by the MMRDA or the private company which has developed the project.
MMRDA should conduct an inquiry into the matter and submit its report in three days and also ensure such incidents don't reoccur," Somaiya told reporters here.
Refuting allegations of lack of disaster management facilities in the monorail, a senior MMRDA official said, "the trains have their own power back-up system and the ventilation systems, and lighting in the train was functioning until evacuation of all passengers. Hence passenger safety onboard the train was maintained throughout. The exact cause of the power disruption is being investigated.
Also Read: Monorail phase 2 gets a boost, MMRDA to lay girders at Wadala bridge
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