Five wagons of goods train catch fire near Chennai; train services to Bengaluru and Mumbai affected

Chennai: Five wagons of a goods train carrying fuel from Chennai to Jolarpet caught fire near Tiruvallur station in the early hours of Sunday, halting train services on the busy Chennai-Arakkonam route that connects the Tamil Nadu capital with cities like Bengaluru, Mumbai, Mysuru, and Coimbatore.

Thick black plumes were seen emerging from the goods train, which consisted of 52 wagons and caught fire at around 5:20 am near Tiruvallur railway station. Hundreds of people living near the tracks were immediately evacuated from their homes and accommodated at various government community centres in and around Tiruvallur.

The fire caused inconvenience to thousands of passengers travelling between Chennai and Bengaluru, Mysuru, Salem, Coimbatore, Tirupati, and Mumbai, with Southern Railway cancelling at least eight trains and diverting dozens of others through Gudur station in Andhra Pradesh.

Three Vande Bharat and Shatabdi trains from Chennai to Mysuru and Coimbatore were cancelled, as were the Double Decker Express and other trains from Chennai to Bengaluru.

Four wagons were completely gutted and one was partially destroyed by the fire, Tiruvallur District Collector M. Pratap said, adding that the Railways, with help from the district administration, successfully detached the remaining 47 wagons and moved them to a safe location, averting a major tragedy.

Overhead power supply for electric trains was cut off as a safety precaution, leading to the cancellation and early termination of several trains at different stations. The Tamil Nadu government said it was arranging transport services from various stations to Chennai and other districts to help passengers reach their destinations.

Officials said about 27,000 litres of diesel were being transported to Jolarpet from the Indian Oil Corporation refinery in Manali near Chennai. As the fire continued for about five hours, the district administration used foam to reduce the smoke and extinguish the flames.

“Four wagons have been completely destroyed and the fire has spread to one more wagon. We already have 15 fire tenders at the spot to douse the fire. Since the burning material is fuel, we are unable to extinguish it with water. We are using foam to douse the fire, and another 10 foam-based fire tenders are rushing in from various districts,” Pratap added.

He also said NDRF teams from Arakkonam and Avadi are on standby.