Vijayawada: Smoker causes false fire alarm aboard Vande Bharat

Vijayawada: A smoker caused commotion aboard Tirupati-Secunderabad Vande Bharat Express at Manubolu on Wednesday.

According to railway officials, a ticketless passenger boarded the train at Tirupati and locked himself in the toilet of C-13 coach of the train. After the train passed Gudur, he smoked inside the toilet which resulted in automatic activation of the aerosol fire extinguisher in the toilet. Activated aerosol fire extinguisher started emitting powder like smoke to put off the fire.

Following this, other passengers in the C-13 coach panicked and relayed the information to the guard through the Emergency Talk Back Unit (ETBU). The onboard RPF escort personnel also rushed to C-13 coach immediately with fire extinguishers sensing a fire accident. The fire extinguishers were used to put off the smoke. The train was immediately halted by the guard at Manubolu and passengers on board broke the window glass of the toilet from outside to save the passenger.

The smoker was detained by the RPF at Nellore. The RPF officials said that appropriate action would be initiated against him as per the Railways Act. Due to this incident, the train was stopped at Manubolu from 4.45 pm to 5.10 pm. The railway officials appealed to passengers to not indulge in any unlawful activities while on journey and at railway station premises. They warned that strict action will be taken against those found guilty.