GUWAHATI, July 8 - Maligaon-headquartered Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) has installed the automatic smoke detection and fire suppression system and thermal imaging cameras to scrutinise passenger coaches.
�NFR has taken many innovative initiatives to further enhance the safety on passenger carrying trains. In recent years there were some incidents when fire broke out from either pantry car or generator car of passenger trains, causing damage. Such fire has the potential of causing loss of human life if not noticed and extinguished timely. In NFR there are 180 power cars and pantry cars. These power cars and pantry cars of the modern LHB rakes have the potential risk of causing fire in running trains due to their inherent use,� said Subhanan Chanda, Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) of NFR.
He said that generator cars carry high quantities of diesel oil which has fire hazards associated with it.
�So a need was felt to control fire in case it breaks out. If fire breaks out in a power car or pantry car due to any reason, there must be a system to control it immediately with suitable smoke/fire detection and suppression system. So, automatic fire detection and suppression systems are being installed in the power cars and pantry cars to address the issue of any fire hazard and provide enhanced safety to passengers,� said Chanda.
The system is designed for early detection of smoke and fire and is capable of detecting all sizes of smoke particles, thus protecting the entire passenger area, electrical panels, lavatories, doorways and gangway area, including kitchen and generator rooms.
�Upon detection of fire, the system suppresses the fire by ensuring automatic spraying of a foam-type mixture. The system is self-diagnostic in nature for any fault within the system like wiring failure,� he added.
Out of the total 180 power cars and pantry cars in NFR, 125 have already been fitted with the smoke detection and fire suppression system.
�Moreover, in electrical systems of passenger coaches, high resistance or excessive current flow is the main cause of heating and is associated with several safety-related troubles and sometimes fire also. Thermal imaging camera allows us to see these invisible thermal signatures of impending damage before the damage actually occurs. The thermal imaging camera is effective in detecting faults and defects like overheating of the cable or equipment due to single phasing or loose connection, overheating of the equipment due to overload and overheating of motor windings due to overload or faulty bearings. Besides, loose socketing of the cables or improper insulation which also produce overheat in the electric circuit or panel, can be also detected,� Chanda said.
He added that thermal imaging cameras have been introduced in all workshops of NFR for scrutiny of all passenger carrying coaches as part of the effort to enhance the safety standard during train operation.
