Madurai train fire: What caused the blaze that killed 9 in Tamil Nadu?

A fire that broke out inside a stationary train compartment near Tamil Nadu’s Madurai Railway station early today (26 August) has killed at least nine people and injured several others. All the deceased passengers reportedly hailed from Uttar Pradesh. The injured are being treated at the Railway Hospital and the Government Rajaji Hospital in Madurai. These passengers were inside a ‘private party coach’ that was parked on a stabling line on the Bodinayackanur track, around 800 metres south of Madurai Railway junction when the fire erupted, reported The Hindu. What caused the fire? According to the initial probe, a gas leak from an LPG cylinder used by the passengers of the private party coach to make tea inside the train led to the fire, as per The Hindu. The blaze erupted around 5:15 am; the fire personnel reached the spot around half an hour later and doused the flames by 7:15 am, news agency PTI reported citing a Southern Railway press release.

VIDEO | Several killed after a fire broke out in a tourist train parked on Bodi Lane near Madurai railway station in the wee hours of Saturday. pic.twitter.com/z6EMz4xsXn

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) August 26, 2023

“This is a private party coach that was attached at Nagercoil Junction yesterday (25 August) by train no 16730 (Punalur-Madurai Exp). Party coach was detached and kept at Madurai stabling line. The passengers in the private party coach have….smuggled gas cylinder and this has caused the fire,” the release added. Southern Railway officials told Deccan Herald (DH), “LPG cylinder is strictly prohibited inside the coach but the group managed to bring it and was reportedly making tea when it exploded”. The TN train fire and its victims The victims were part of a 63-member tourist group that started their journey from Uttar Pradesh’s Lucknow on 17 August and were in South India on a pilgrimage. As per The Hindu report, a tour operator had booked one sleeper class coach from Lucknow. The coach, which was carrying 55 tourists and eight support staff of the tour operator, was attached to different trains that were plying to various tourist destinations, Madurai Divisional Railway Manager (DRM), P Anant, said. Before being attached to Punalur-Madurai Express, the coach was coming from Kanniyakumari and the Padmanapuram Palace. As the train arrived at the Madurai Railway Junction in the morning today, the private party coach was detached and left at the Madurai stabling line, DH reported. According to the DRM, the doors of the private party coach were locked from the inside using extra padlocks, leaving the passengers trapped when the blaze erupted. “Since no one knew who had the keys, the passengers had to break open the lock to try and escape,” DRM Anant said, as per The Hindu. [caption id=“attachment_13043222” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Passengers waited outside after a blaze broke out inside a private party coach near Madurai Railway station. PTI[/caption] “The passengers had locked the party coach inside for their safety. The stove used by them to prepare tea had led to the blast,” Tamil Nadu minister for commercial taxes, P Moorthy, was quoted as saying by Indian Express.  Praveen Gupta, a member of the tourist group, said they were to leave for Chennai by train on Sunday and then to Lucknow. “There was a sudden explosion. Before we could realise what was happening, the fire spread to the entire coach. We pulled out as many people as we could from the coach. But unfortunately, we lost some of our people. We never thought our pilgrimage could end with such sadness,” DH quoted Gupta as saying. “The private party had illegally carried a gas cylinder, stove and other inflammable articles which led to the freak fire accident,” Chief Public Relations Officer Southern Railway, B Guganesan, told News18. The Railway Divisional Manager, Madurai said in a statement that only the tourist party coach was damaged in the fire mishap, as per Indian Express. A gas cylinder was recovered from the spot, while some utensils, including pressure cookers and plastic drums, were found outside the coach, reported The Hindu. [caption id=“attachment_13043172” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] An LPG cylinder and other items were found outside the stationary coach near Madurai Railway station. PTI[/caption] Condoling the deaths, Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin announced a Rs 3 lakh ex-gratia for the family of those killed in the mishap, while his Uttar Pradesh counterpart Yogi Adityanath announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh for the kin of the deceased. The Southern Railway will provide an ex-gratia of Rs 10 lakh to the families of those who lost their lives. ALSO READ: Odisha derailment: Why do trains keep going off track in India? What do the rules say? The Railway officials pointed out that anyone can book a party coach using the IRCTC portal. However, they cannot carry any inflammable items. “A travel agent M/s Bhasin travels, Sitapur had booked this private party coach online through IRCTC. They are strictly not allowed to carry or use any inflammable material like gas cylinders… The coach is meant to be used only for transportation purposes,” the Southern Railway said, as per DH. Carrying inflammable materials like gas cylinders, crackers, acid, Kerosene, petrol, thermit welding, stove, and explosives is punishable under sections 67, 164 and 165 of the Railways Act of 1989, according to News18. Paragraph 9 of the Railway Manual states that private tourist parties have to submit a written declaration that they will not carry any inflammable materials while travelling on trains. Even the tourist party involved in the train mishap today had given a declaration to this effect, noted India Today. With inputs from agencies