This story is from June 15, 2019

Mumbai: Train accident averted, thanks to CCTV cameras

Central Railway's decision to install CCTV cameras in the ghat section of the Mumbai-Pune route paid off on Thursday night as authorities were able to avert an accident by stopping a train well in time before it could hit a fallen boulder.
Mumbai: Train accident averted, thanks to CCTV cameras
The boulder which was 2.3 metres long, 1.6 metres high and 2.2 metres wide, was big enough to cause serious damage if a train were to hit it
MUMBAI: Central Railway's decision to install CCTV cameras in the ghat section of the Mumbai-Pune route paid off on Thursday night as authorities were able to avert an accident by stopping a train well in time before it could hit a fallen boulder.
The boulder which was 2.3 metres long, 1.6 metres high and 2.2 metres wide, was big enough to cause serious damage if a train were to hit it.
It fell on the track near Lonavala around 8.15 pm, holding up the Mumbai-Kolhapur Sahyadri Express for over two hours.
"The monitoring staff not only alerted higher authorities, but also ensured power supply to the overhead equipment was switched off and oncoming trains were stopped well in time," said Sunil Udasi, chief spokesperson, Central Railway.
Senior PRO AK Jain said, "The Sahyadri Express resumed its journey toward Kolhapur around 10.30 pm after it was brought back to Thakurwadi."
The incident was captured on CCTVs at Monkey Hill near Khandala.
CCTV cameras have been installed on the ghat section for real-time images of loose rocks falling on the tracks to prevent accidents.
The ghat section between Karjat-Lonavla is also patrolled manually.
Udasi said, "We have installed 43 cameras in the 12- km stretch of the Monkey Hill-Khandala ghat section."
CR also carries out surveys with drones to capture visuals of the ghat section as loose rocks can lead to landslides, endangering the safety of train operations during the monsoon. In 2017, there were three incidents of landslides, but no major casualties. In fact, on August 21, 2017, a boulder had hit a train coach, tearing through its roof, but there were no fatalities. Central Railway has already begun work on removing loose boulders from vulnerable spots. In case of any boulder falling incident, teams can be mobilised to undertake relief and rescue operations.
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