A Taiwan Railway Corp train was delayed for 32 minutes yesterday after a power bank carried by a passenger spontaneously caught fire, the state-run railway company said.
The incident occurred at 6:34am, when Hsinchu Railway Station received a report from the conductor of commuter train No. 1804 that a fire had broken out in a carriage after a passenger’s power bank combusted, the railway said.
Station staff rushed to the scene with fire extinguishers, working together with railway police to put out the fire, and evacuated passengers to the platform, the company said, adding that no injuries were reported.
Photo: Wu Liang-yi, Taipei Times
Fire investigators arrived at the scene and completed evidence collection at 7:02am, after which the train was cleared for removal, it said.
Although the incident did not cause major damage, the railway swapped in a replacement train to continue operations due to residual smoke and the odor in the affected carriage, the company said.
Affected passengers were transferred to another train on the Liujia Line departing 23 minutes later, it said.
The replacement Train No. 1804 resumed service after a 32-minute delay, departing at 7:08am.
The company urged passengers to purchase power banks certified by the Bureau of Standards, Metrology and Inspection.
It also advised against placing power banks in poorly ventilated bags while charging mobile devices and recommended avoiding using devices while charging to prevent overheating.
The company said that power banks contain fragile components, and should be protected from drops and impacts, adding that they should be turned off when not in use to prevent overheating or combustion.
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