By IANS,
Bijnor (Uttar Pradesh) : An alert engine driver averted a major tragedy after a fire broke out in a train carrying pilgrims in this Uttar Pradesh district Saturday, an official said. No one was injured in the incident.
The fire broke out in the pantry car of the Shree Swaminarayan special train carrying pilgrims near Puraini railway station.
“It could have resulted in a serious tragedy, but the alacrity shown by the train driver saved the lives of the passengers. The driver spotted flames emerging from the pantry car, and immediately informed the railway authorities about the incident and managed to get the signal for halting the train,” Government Railway Police (GRP) Inspector Dharmendra Kumar told reporters in Bijnor, some 350 km from Lucknow.
“After the fire was controlled, the train was taken to Bijnor’s Nagina railway station, where the flames were doused completely by the fire brigade,” he added.
The train was heading to Haridwar from Gujarat, officials said. Though the fire could not spread to other wagons, the pantry car was badly damaged in the incident.