MUMBAI, SEPT 28: Central Railway up local services were paralysed this evening following damage to an overhead wire between Kurla and Vidyavihar stations after it was struck by lightning.According to railway officials, the incident occurred at around 6.45 pm, when an overhead wire tripped during the rain, halting traffic on the slow and fast track towards Mumbai. Witnesses say they saw a huge fireball at the damaged spot where the wires were found hanging. However, there were no casualties as no train was passing by at the time. Traffic on three up through lines (fast locals going to CST) was suspended for an hour till repair work was over. Surprisingly, the overhead equipment department (OHE) responsible for carrying out repairs did not reach the site for over half an hour. A tower wagon, which maintains and rectifies such problems, was despatched later.``The OHE staff could not be contacted as they were not present at the site,'' said a railway official at Kurla station. Another official said trafficon the other lines would be affected later. ``Such incidents prove once again that Central Railway is not prepared to tackle such situations,'' said another railway official. Trains on the other lines were running at least 30-35 minutes late after the incident.
