STALLED LRT Causes – COACH “Missing” From CONTROL TOWER Screen; “MALFUNCTION of BACK-UP SYSTEM” –CEO Rapid KL; SABOTAGE Ruled OUT- DG Railway
Weary commuters leaving the LRT station having to endure 4 hous delay in a normal 30 minute ride
Question raised in the Dewan Negara by Senator Lee Sing ChooiThis is the second such incident, the first being in December 2005, which lasted 5 mins when the back-up system was functioning.
The stranding of more than a 1000 passengers on LRT trains last night was a bitter and a traumatic experience for all commuters. And there are conflicting reasons given for the sudden stoppage of the LRT trains. “When the LRT stalled, it seems the passengers, pressed the ‘emergency door latch” to open the door for ventilation. This is understandable, to get air. But of course now the whole system gets into “micro-serious” phase. Now we have a door open in between stations, now the control tower shut down the system” Is he blaming the passengers for causing the system to shut down? He should explain WHAT caused the train to stall, the passengers were only reacting to a bad situation. “Even to slow down the whole process of evacuation we have first to shut down the power, shut down the system to know it is absolutely safe to evacuate the passengers. Sometime we have to prolong the delay in order to make sure the recovery is safe" Apparently it was a computer malfunction system. He claimed the panic reaction of the passengers on board has worsened the situation which is otherwise manageable. Blaming the computer glitches and malfunction is the all familiar explanation whenever there is a failure. Why did the LRT stalled to cause the passengers to open the doors for air? They should admit the trains are not adequately designed. If all the windows rely on the AC power supply, then there should be a back-up emergency system in the form of DC storage batteries to operate at least some windows for some ventilation. It is high time that the driverless LRT trains be manned with at least one driver in order to help prevent any repeat of yesterday's problems. It may save some staffing costs, but with a driver on each train during peak hours it would be helpful in case of emergency. And why did it take so long - 30 minutes or more - for the passengers to be 1. Services did not resume at
Earlier in a reply in the Dewan Negara, Finance Ministry parliamentary secretary Datuk Seri Dr Hilmi Yahaya said since Putra LRT's operational module was based on the "feel safe" system; the operator at the control tower had to shut down the electricity supply, causing the moving trains to stop to prevent them from “crashing into each other”
Above LEFT: Datuk Helmi replying ; " I am now awaiting a detailed investigation report on the incident before further action is taken. According to reports I have received, the response team arrived at the scene of the incident within 20 mins. The situation is now under investigation"
Above RIGHT: Senator Lee Sing Chooi raised the question: "How the government plan to boast the safety of public transportation system as well as increase the public confidence following Monday’s incident"
But the Raipd KL CEO, Rein Westra had a different story to explain the shut down of the LRT system.
rescued?
Bernama lastest dispatch..
Railway Department To Investigate LRT Malfunction; July 25, 2006 18:46 PM
KUALA LUMPUR, July 25 (Bernama) -- The Railway Department has been instructed to investigate the cause of the Putra LRT malfunction Monday which trapped hundreds of passengers in four trains that stopped on the track.
Transport Minister Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy said Tuesday the department would be given two months to look into the
He said Rapid KL, which operates the Putra LRT, STAR LRT and bus transport network in the city, activated safety measures after some passengers trapped in the coaches broke out and walked on the track.
Rapid KL had to stop the entire service along the line resulting in passengers being stranded for a longer time, he told a news conference.
The situation was worsened by the failure of the "back-up" system to function as expected, he added.
Also present at the news conference were Rapid KL chief executive officer Rein Westra and Railway Director-General Anuar Kassim.
Speaking at the Dewan Negara Tuesday, Finance Ministry Parliamentary Secretary Datuk Seri Dr Hilmi Yahaya said the incident happened after the LRT control tower detected one coach missing from the computer screen.
He said the operator in the control tower, in keeping with the safety operational procedure, shut down the electricity supply which caused the moving trains to stop.
The operator executed the procedure because of fear that the moving trains would crash into each other.
Westra said Rapid KL would submit an initial investigation report to the Railway Department within 40 hours on the incident which happened along the Kelana Jaya line.
He said the report would cover the technical aspects as well as the steps taken by the LRT control tower to rectify computer glitches which had caused the trains to stop.
Anuar said the department had ruled out sabotage as a possible cause.
The incident caused panic and four women passengers in two trains fainted due to breathing difficulties.
Some impatient passengers forced open the automated train doors to get out of the coaches while the rest were later evacuated by Rapid KL staff and Fire and Rescue Department personnel.
No casualties were reported.
.. and here is a dramatic a first hand account from a reader in Msiakini,
LETTERS: LRT commuters in stalled train ignored Shalina Azhar Jul 25, 06 2:51pm
I refer to the reports today in various newspapers of the passengers trapped in the Putra LRT trains yesterday evening. I really take offence with the statements by the Jalan Hang Tuah Fire and Rescue Department and Rapid KL's senior corporate manager who were not truthful and glossed over the exact details of the event.
2. Firemen did not rescue us at
3. For the train stuck between Pasar Seni and Masjid Jamek, the firemen did not rescue the passengers. The passengers pried open the doors themselves. I know because my colleague was in that train.
4. The trains did not stall for only 30 minutes. We were stuck in the train for one hour and 10 minutes.
5. How dare the senior corporate manager say that it was a technical glitch? Technical glitches are when the trains stop moving for 10 minutes. This was a whole system failure.
I am extremely upset that none of the news reports came down hard on Rapid KL for such event for a lot of us. The staff was rude and brusque after the whole ordeal.
How difficult is it to make an announcement to the affected customers? How can a big company like Rapid KL that manages the LRT lines not know how to communicate with its passengers?
I was on the
But yesterday was different. At the Masjid Jamek station before boarding, after waiting for 10 minutes at the platform, there was an announcement that they were experiencing technical difficulties and that trains will move slower than usual. When the next train did come along at
True enough hardly had the train moved for two minutes when it stalled. Over the next one hour, there were at least three announcements, beseeching passengers to be patient with their 'technical glitches' and that train will start moving shortly. This only served to anger passengers even more as the train had been immobilised for the past 30 minutes.
And to make matters worse, there were no phone signals. Everyone was either frantically trying to call or SMS out, but to no avail. Passengers were getting agitated and were trying to pry open the doors and break the windows.
Fifty minutes into this ordeal, the power went off and we were all plunged into darkness and left without any air. That's when passengers started getting panicky. Just when I was feeling lightheaded myself, one of the doors was pried open by a fireman.
No explanations, no representatives from Rapid KL to assist the passengers. When we made it back to the Masjid Jamek station, the shutters were down, as with all the ticketing machines. Not a single kind comforting word from any of the Rapid KL staff.
I finally made it back home at
My questions to SPNB therefore are:
* What is the SoP (standard operating procedure) for emergencies?
* What is the response time for such emergencies? Should you not be rescuing passengers after only a few minutes?
* What are the steps being taken to ensure that this does not happen again?
How can passengers communicate with the control room when all the mechanisms to do so in the train do not serve their purpose? We were pressing the red button and smashing the glass and yet nobody got back to us.
I am angry and fearful. Why can't Malaysian companies really think of the many lives that are in their hands daily and do everything in their power to safeguard it?
Customer service is not just about smiling faces and a friendly approach. It is about the value and worth attached to each and every customer. And I detest knowing that Syarikat Prasarana Negara Berhad, which owns Rapid KL, thinks that my life is expendable.
One Coach Missing From Screen, LRT Passengers Stranded - Dr Hilmi
Finance Ministry parliamentary secretary Datuk Seri Dr Hilmi Yahaya said since Putra LRT's operational module was based on the "feel safe" system, the operator at the control tower had to shut down the electricity supply, causing the moving trains to stop.
He said the operator executed the procedure fearing that the moving trains would crash into each other.
Five trains were operating on the routes at the time of the incident, he said.
"So, at the control tower when we shut down the electricity, all trains stopped," he said when replying to Senator Lee Sing Chooi who asked about Putra LRT's safety standard.
In the
The incident caused panic, causing four women passengers in two trains to faint due to breathing difficulties.
Dr Hilmi said the Putra LRT coach doors could not be opened, prompting the passengers to break the windows as an alternative to find a way out.
This was because the automatic doors malfunctioned due to the power cut.
"Since the incident happened during the peak hour, there was panic and passengers fainted.
"According to reports, assistance was extended 20 minutes after the incident was reported," he said.
The NST has a more detailed account:
400 trapped in LRT trains due to glitch;
KUALA LUMPUR: At least 400 passengers were temporarily trapped when three LRT trains stalled in a tunnel running below the city yesterday.
At least four fainted in the crowded trains while Rangkaian Pengangkutan Integrasi Deras (Rapid KL), the service operator, scrambled to rectify a malfunction.
The trains came to a halt at
S. Ganesan, 47, who was travelling to Kuala Lumpur City Centre, said passengers were told the technical problem was being rectified via the communication system. However, they prised open the doors using an axe kept in a glass box for emergencies.
"Our train stopped in the tunnel between the Pasar Seni and Masjid Jamek stations. After we got the doors open, we walked along the tracks until we reached the Masjid Jamek station," he said.
Another passenger, who wanted to be known only as Vidya, 35, said she was disappointed help took so long to come.
"I realised something was wrong when the train was moving slower than normal. They should have stopped the train at the station to let the passengers out rather than allow it to continue its journey.
"It was hot and I started to sweat. It became unbearable especially for those who were standing," she said.
Two other trains on the north-bound track of the Kelana Jaya Line, formerly known as Putra LRT, stopped between the Masjid Jamek and Dang Wangi stations.
Jalan Hang Tuah Fire and Rescue Department operations commander Azizan Ismail said about 400 passengers from the three trains had got out when firemen arrived at
"We helped evacuate the passengers who were still in the tunnel," he said, adding that five fire engines, three rapid reaction units and 57 firemen responded.
The four people who fainted due to heat exhaustion were given first aid treatment.
It was learnt that the disruption occurred when the main computer screen at the control headquarters indicated a "missing" train along the 29km line.
This resulted in major stations along the line - Masjid Jamek, KLCC,
Rapid KL senior corporate manager Katherine Chew said the Rapid KL special response team took about 30 minutes to rectify the problem.
Services resumed at
posted by multidimid at 11:41 PM
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