Mumbai: 3 trains stalled for an hour between Dahisar, Borivali after overhead wire snaps

Commuters are brought out of the AC local even as Railway officials attempt to fix the snag on Wednesday morning. Pic/Nimesh Dave

Commuters on Western Railway complained of lack of communication inside trains after suburban services were disrupted on Wednesday morning as the overhead wire had snapped between Dahisar and Borivli during rush hour.

Three trains, including a premier AC local, were detained for nearly an hour and 18 services were cancelled due to the snag.

WR officials refuted the allegations and said that there were announcements in two of the three detained trains.

Also Read: Mumbai local train commuters fume after services hit due to technical snag near Borivali

Shashi Sharma, a commuter stranded on the train, tweeted, "We were stuck in between Borivli and Dahisar. It's 30 minutes AC was also not working and no update on it. We can't catch any other train from here as it stopped in a remote area. Worst management. We are paying a huge amount for tickets. AC local 9.23 from Virar (sic)."

Another commuter, Aditya Dwivedi, said it had become very hot and stifling inside the train.

A commuter Vikas Tiwari said, "The AC local was stuck between Dahisar and Borivli for one hour. The AC was off. People were literally stuck in an AC train with an open door. The helpline number doesn't work. There was no update. Even the emergency button broke."

Another commuter, Sanika Vohra, slammed railway officials for not posting updates on social media.

"There was no way of knowing what had actually happened. We had to rely on updates from other commuters and mostly they were about how the AC train had broken down," she said.

A woman commuter Kinjal Padaya sent out an SOS message from the AC train. "It seems there are no emergency ladders in AC locals to get off the train in certain situations. Our train was stuck for one hour but thousands of commuters were left in the lurch. No announcements were being made."

RPF constables later helped commuters to get out of the trains safely and even brought in ladders.

A WR spokesperson told mid-day, "The overhead wire snapped at 10.02 am between Dahisar and Borivli on the Churchgate-bound fast line. Three trains were held up. Others were diverted. Announcements were made at stations as well as on trains. Work was carried out on a war footing and services were promptly restored. The lines were restored by 11.30 am and 18 services were cancelled."