India News : A major rail incident occurred early Monday morning near Yalamanchili railway station in Andhra Pradesh when two coaches of the Tatanagar–Ernakulam Express caught fire, resulting in the death of a 70-year-old passenger. Railway and police officials confirmed the incident and said that two forensic teams have been deployed to investigate the cause of the blaze.
According to railway authorities, the fire was reported around 12:45 am while the train was passing through the Yalamanchili section. The flames were first noticed by the loco pilots, who immediately halted the train. However, before fire services could reach the spot, the fire had already engulfed two air-conditioned coaches — B-1 and M-2.
At the time of the incident, 82 passengers were travelling in coach B-1 and 76 passengers in coach M-2. Tragically, a passenger in coach B-1 was found dead. The deceased has been identified as Chandrasekhar Sundaram (70).
Eyewitnesses said that dense fog at the time of the incident worsened the situation. As smoke rapidly spread inside the coaches, panic gripped the passengers. Poor visibility due to darkness and fog created chaos, forcing passengers to rush out of the train in fear.
Fire tenders from Anakapalli, Yalamanchili and Nakkapalli were rushed to the spot, and it took several hours to bring the fire under control.
Preliminary investigation and railway sources suggest that the train was running nearly four hours behind schedule. Sparks were reportedly noticed near Narsingabilli after the train departed Anakapalli station. Officials suspect that the fire may have been caused by overheating of the brake block (brake binding) in coach B-1, which gradually spread to the adjacent coach.
Both coaches were completely gutted, and passengers lost their belongings in the fire. The damaged coaches were detached from the train, after which the remaining rake was allowed to proceed towards its destination. Railway authorities said that alternative arrangements are being made for affected passengers.
