TIRUPATTUR: Seven wagons of a goods train that detached from the rake at Jolarpettai in Tirupattur district on Sunday evening travelled nearly 6 km along the Jolarpettai-Bengaluru section before derailing at a set of track switch points on the outskirts of Jolarpettai.
The incident occurred while the rake was being shunted from the loop line to the main line at the Jolarpettai goods yard. Seven express trains bound for Chennai and Salem from Bengaluru were briefly delayed due to the incident.
The wagons began rolling following the push from a locomotive at the opposite end and were aided by the gradient of the track. However, railway officials disputed the claim that the wagons travelled nearly 6 km without a locomotive, maintaining that they moved only 300 to 400 metres before derailing.
No major untoward incident occurred as the wagons were moving along the track meant for operation of trains from Jolarpettai towards Bengaluru, which doesn’t see much traffic at that hour. On Monday, Southern Railway general manager U Subba Rao inspected the site and ordered an inquiry.
Sources said the incident occurred around 7.15 pm on Sunday, when the seven wagons, part of a 29-wagon rake, got detached when the train was being pushed by a locomotive from the opposite end, due to improper coupling between the seventh and eighth wagons.
Following the impact and aided by the gradient on the Jolarpettai-Bengaluru section, the detached wagons began rolling along the track without a locomotive before derailing at Thamalerimuthur, about 6 km away.
‘No major disruption to train operations in Chennai-Bengaluru section’
Hearing the noise, a railway gatekeeper in the area immediately alerted officials. Following this, railway officials issued emergency warnings.
As a result, seven express trains bound for Chennai and Salem from Bengaluru including Bengaluru–Thiruvananthapuram Kochuveli were detained in the Bengaluru-Jolarpettai section.
The Bengaluru-Jolarpettai MEMU service was short-terminated at Somanayakkanpatti. However, train services from Jolarpettai towards Bengaluru were not affected.
Upon being informed, senior railway officials from the Salem and Chennai divisions rushed to the spot and launched restoration works. Workers used gas-cutting equipment to detach the derailed wagons and a JCB to remove them from the tracks.
The track was restored around 12.20 am on Monday, and the section was cleared for train operations by 1 am.
Southern Railway officials, however, said it was impossible for the wagons to roll such a long distance without being halted by track switch points, even with the gradient in their favour.
“The wagons derailed within 300 to 400 metres of the point where they detached. There was no major disruption to train operations in the Chennai-Bengaluru section,” an official said.