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Advanced Fire Detection system for

Rajdhani, Humsafar and for the upcoming
Tejas Express

4 Apr 2017 in Category(ies):  / / Derailments, Accidents, Rail Fractures,

Mishaps and Casualties in Railway Areas, Indian Railways

Shaken from its slumber by a number of fire accidents on trains,

railways will finally introduce an advanced multi-level fire
detection and response system in premium trains like Rajdhani
Express. In the last 30 years, around 500 people have died in fire-
related accidents on trains and have left hundred others injured.

The railways is also planning to equip all air-conditioned coaches

used for overnight journey with the early warning fire detection
system, sources in railways said. The advanced fire detection
system will also be installed in other superior trains like Humsafar
and the upcoming Tejas Express.

Senior officials in railways said the national carrier is prioritising

safety in train operations over everything else and the decision
comes as a result of it. On December 28, 2013, an air-conditioned
coach of the Bangaluru City-Hazur Sahib Nanded Express caught
fire near Kothacheruvu in Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh
resulting in the death of at least 26 people and injuring 12 others.

With the advanced system, a train will stop in case of a fire

incident as brakes will be applied automatically. If the smoke rises
beyond a particular level, announcements will be made and hooter
sirens will ring in the affected coaches. The announcement in the
affected coaches would inform passengers that the brakes have
been applied, and that they should not panic but disembark safely
from the coach once the train comes to a complete stop. Besides,
all power cars, pantry cars, locomotives of special services would
also be equipped with high-pressure, water-mist fire suppression
systems to protect the expensive equipment from being burnt in
case of a fire.

Early warning of a fire event can prevent panic and loss of life and
damage to assets, minimising disruption of services, a senior
official said. In the present fire-detection system in trains, the
response time is slow, pre-alarms are too late, detection rate in
high airflow is poor, and performance gets affected by soot and
dust.

In the advanced fire-detection equipment, the central monitoring

system will be in the power car. The fire detection system will be
connected to the central monitoring system where technical
personnel will be stationed. The technical staff is required to
investigate if there is actually a case of potential fire in that
particular coach. An announcement followed by hooter takes
place in the affected coach after a delay of 55 seconds.

A senior railway official explained that the display of the central

monitoring system shows all the coaches with unique
identification number on its screen along with the alarm status
and graphical display of smoke level. In case the smoke level rises
in a coach, the flasher light gets activated to alert the technical
staff and indicates the coach number which may be affected.

If the smoke level rises further and reaches level 2, the flasher
light gets activated in the affected coach and an audio visual
alarm at the CMS prompts technical staff to take necessary
action. If the smoke level rises further to level 3, the brake
application takes place automatically.

Some Train Fire Accidents

December 28, 2013 – An air-conditioned coach of the

Bangaluru City-Hazur Sahib Nanded express caught fire near
Kothacheruvu in Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh resulting
in the death of at least 26 people and injuring 12 others
November 22, 2011 – Howrah – Dehradun Doon Express
caught fire in which at least seven people were burnt to death
and several others were injured. Around 2 am, coach number
B1 of the Dehradun-bound train caught fire. Later, the fire
spread to coach B2. Both coaches were badly burnt, but all the
casualties were from B1.
 August 1, 2008 – Gowthami Express supposedly got short-
circuited and fire broke out in midnight when the train crossed
Kesamudram station in Warangal district of Andhra Pradesh.
Those wakened by the sounds escaped by pulling the
emergency chain to slow down the train, but 40 people lost
their lives in this incident.

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