Khandwa was in a state of panic when it was found that on Sunday a wagon filled with LPG leaked in a goods train. The train, which had 32 wagons, was heading to Jabalpur, but on its way to Panvel it was noticed that the problem was occurring around the Khandwa Junction.
The alert arrived and the railway officials, the district administration and the police officials rushed to the site and undertook direct control of the situation. The operation was under the supervision of senior officials such as the district collector and superintendent of police. To provide against any further complication the affected wagon was at once isolated as far as the outer part of the station was concerned, and the other wagons were safely forwarded to their destination.
To contain the LPG leakage, which lasted about three hours, emergency personnel used wet sacks and sand to control the situation, and reduce the chances of fire or explosion. This was a preemptive move to curb operations on the trains in the region as at least six trains were delayed, including a Rajdhani Express train.
Pithampur has invited a technical team to carry out a thorough inspection of the faulty wagon and find out what caused the leak. According to the officials, timely intervention resulted in the prevention of a potentially large scale disaster.
The accident emphasizes the need to use rigorous safety measures when transporting dangerous goods. Officials have promised a detailed investigation and appropriate measures to be taken to ensure that such incidents do not happen again.