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LONDON - A roll of loose tarpaulin was believed to have caused a tube train to derail during the early morning rush hour in London on Thursday, injuring 40 people and trapping hundreds for hours.
Six of the eight carriages of the westbound Central line train between Mile End and Bethnal Green stations in east London derailed when a sheet of tarpaulin that had been stored in a by the side of the track became loose as trains passed at up to 35mph.
The driver was said to have seen the material and slammed on his emergency brakes but the sheet got caught under the wheels on the right hand running rail, taking his carriage off the tracks and the other five followed.
More than 350 passengers were trapped for two hours in temperatures nearing 100F.
A further 450 passengers were also stranded on a following train.
Eleven people were taken to hospital for treatment, although none were seriously injured.
Jacqui McElroy, 34, said the train seemed to lift as it rounded a corner and that some commuters had panicked, fearing it was a terrorist attack.
"It started to rock unbelievably, really violently, the carriage filled with smoke and we could see sparks and there was a smell of electrical burning as the driver was braking.
"People were shouting and the driver's voice sounded really shaky - he said he did not know what we had gone over, but that we had derailed," she said.
Ms McElroy, a make-up artist, said the driver walked through the carriage trying to calm passengers before the Transport Police arrived around 20 minutes later.
Another passenger Patrick Worrall, 28, said: "The worst thing was the heat, Some people were having difficulty breathing, but when emergency services arrived they were the first to be led away."
About two hours after the incident the commuters were led to safety along the track.
The incident closed both Mile End and Bethnal Green underground stations yesterday and there was no service on the Central line between Liverpool Street and Leytonstone.
Metronet, which is responsible for maintaining the tracks, said it was carrying out an examination of all its storage facilities along the tracks.
A spokesman said: "While it is important not to pre-judge the outcome of the investigation, our initial reports suggest that a bale of material became dislodged from its licensed storage position in a tunnel cross-passage."
The Rail Accident Investigation Bureau has begun an investigation into the incident.
- INDEPENDENT
