Break-down trains to be kept ready for fire emergencies

In the wake of spurt in cases of trains catching fire, the railways has decided to equip its break-down trains with fire-fighting equipment to meet emergency situations before fire tenders from Department of Fire and Emergency Services reach accident spots.

This plan is likely to be put into operation within eight months, and the railways is working out the cost of equipment and procurement procedure. According to officials, break-down trains will be fitted with four to five pumps, will have arrangements to store sufficient water and long pipes, and they will be stationed at important railway stations.

At present, five kg portable fire extinguishers are available in air-conditioned coaches, guards’ cabins, pantry cars and with locomotive pilots. Normally, each train will have at least 8-10 portable fire extinguishers to douse small-scale fires. But, they may not be effective if there is a major accident such as the one that occurred near Nellore on Monday.

Earlier, the railways had a separate fire service at all important stations. However, it was dismantled 10 years ago following directions from Railway Board which cited cost factor.

Since then, the railways is depending on respective state fire and emergency services department for assistance during emergencies. About the fire safety measures at Bangalore Railway Station, A K Agarwal, Divisional Railway Manager, Bangalore, said the station was fully equipped with fire safety measures to deal with any eventuality. All departments in administrative block had portable fire extinguishers, but they were depending on the state Department of Fire and Emergency Services to put out major fire, he said.

Agarwal said every platform had pipeline with round-the-clock water supply. Fire alarms were installed on all platforms to alert passengers of any emergency, and staff were available all the time to evacuate stranded passengers, he added.

The DRM said fire tenders hardly require five minutes to reach the administrative block and platforms from the fire station on Seshadri Road. Since all the roads around the station were busy all the time, there was a special entrance from the cargo section for easy accessibility to all platforms, he added.