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A fire erupted inside a stationary train compartment at a railway station in southern India, killing nine people on Saturday morning, officials said.
The blaze broke out at 5am and burned for two hours before firefighters were able to put it out, authorities said.
It started inside a train’s private compartment, which was detached and parked on the tracks in the Madurai station, located in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, according to a statement by the Southern Railway.
A gas cylinder smuggled in by passengers caused the fire, the statement read, adding that police, fire and rescue officials helped pull out the bodies. There was no damage to other coaches.
“It was a single, stationary coach booked by a private tourist operator. Somebody tried to make tea and it caused the fire,” Madurai district spokesman Sali Thalapathi told AFP.
“Nine people have died, three of them are women. Nine others are injured but their injuries are not life-threatening.” Southern Railway did not say how many people were inside the compartment at the time of the fire, but said many managed to get out.
Officials told the Press Trust of India news agency that 20 others were injured and taken to a hospital. Footage showed huge flames leaping out of the windows of the train carriage.
Some passengers managed to escape the inferno in time. Local media reports said the passengers had illegally smuggled aboard a gas cylinder which exploded when they tried to use it.
Accidents are common on India’s railroad network, one of the world’s largest, with some 22 million passengers daily. Most collisions and fires are blamed on poor maintenance and human error.
