 |
In a bizarre incident, an automatic railway engine ran unattended up to 13km from Wadi station in Kalaburagi. The panicked loco pilot had to follow the rogue engine on a bike and bring it back around to the train coaches it has left behind.
The dramatic 'chase' lasted 20 minutes, the driver finally managed to catch up with the driverless engine around a kilometre ahead of the next station, Nalwar.
The Mumbai Mail from Chennai arrived at Wadi Junction station at around 3 pm on Wednesday. The electric line ends at Wadi and so a diesel engine is attached to the bogies for the journey from Wadi to Solapur.
The electric engine was detached from the bogies at platform No. 4 and the train continued on its way to Mumbai.
The loco pilot of the electric engine that was still standing on the platform stepped out around 3.30pm. Within moments, the engine took off on its own as an aghast loco pilot looked on in disbelief.
The Wadi station authorities immediately informed the next few stations to clear the signals and tracks and stop trains coming from the opposite direction.
The electric engine was cruising at 30kmph and the Wadi station manager JN Paris and the loco pilot set off after the runaway engine on a bike.
The chase finally ended at around 3.50pm as the engine slowed. The loco pilot clambered onto the engine and managed to stop it.