Unexpected Halt: Smoking Incident Halts Vande Bharat Express Journey
Tirupati, 11th August 2023: Tirupati–Secunderabad Vande Bharat Express, Train No. 20702, faced an unforeseen disruption as an unauthorized passenger’s secret smoking triggered a false fire alarm, bringing the train to an abrupt halt. This incident occurred in coach C – 13 shortly after passing Gudur in Andhra Pradesh’s Tirupati, according to railway officials.
The illicit act of smoking inside a restroom set off an aerosol fire extinguisher, releasing a powdery substance meant for fire suppression. The sudden release of the powder caused panic among passengers, leading them to alert the train guard via the emergency phone link within the coach. Consequently, the train made an unexpected stop at Manubolu around 5 pm.
A spokesperson from the Vijayawada Division of the South Central Railway (SCR) Zone explained, “An unauthorized passenger boarded the train from Tirupati and locked himself in the toilet of C-13 coach. The passenger smoked inside the toilet which resulted in automatic activation of aerosol fire extinguisher present inside the toilet.”
Panic prevailed among passengers, after smoke in #Tirupati– #Hyderabad #VandeBharatExpress
An unauthorized passenger was locked himself in the toilet and during smoking, activated aerosol fire extinguisher started emitting powder like #smoke to put of #fire. He was detained :SCR pic.twitter.com/b9mn7IWTXy
— Surya Reddy (@jsuryareddy) August 9, 2023
Responding swiftly, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) arrived at the coach with a fire extinguisher. They took action by breaking the restroom window and safely removing the individual responsible for smoking. The local police detained the offender in Nellore, invoking appropriate legal measures under the Railway Act. With the incident resolved, the train later resumed its journey.
