A compartment of a stationed goods train caught fire at Rupsa railway station in Odisha’s Balasore district on Saturday morning. However, prompt action by fire brigade personnel brought the fire under control, and helped avert any untoward incident. The cause of the fire is still unknown. The goods train carrying coal from West Bengal to Balasore was parked at the station when the incident occurred, reported news agency ANI. Immediately after smoke was spotted coming out of the wagon, the station authorities informed Odisha Fire Service personnel, who reacted swiftly and doused the fire.
After the fire was brought under control, "The goods train left for its destination," said sources to news agency ANI.
This comes after more than 288 people lost their lives in a major train accident in the Balasore district last week. Over 1,100 others were also injured in the tragic accident.
Meanwhile, in a separate incident that took place on Thursday evening, a fire was spotted in an air-conditioned coach of Durg-Puri Express in Odisha's Nuapada district, causing panic among passengers, the East Coast Railway (ECoR) said, according to PTI.
However, no casualties were reported from the incident. In an official statement, the ECoR said smoke was detected in the B3 coach of the train after it reached the Khariar Road station on Thursday evening.
ECoR also gave the reasong for the fire and said, "The brake pads caught fire due to friction and incomplete release of brakes. The fire was confined to brake pads. There was no damage," reported PTI.
The official release further said the problem was resolved in less than an hour and the train departed the station at 11 pm.
However, the incident created panic among passengers, and most of them rushed out of the train, reported PTI.