Monkeys snap power lines in Kerala; Vandebharat and 4 other trains delayed for two hours

Payyoli (Kerala): Railway traffic on the Kozhikode route was severely disrupted for nearly two hours on Sunday afternoon after an overhead electricity cable snapped due to monkeys jumping on the lines. The incident occurred around 3.00 pm between the Payyoli Kottakkal railway gate and Moorad bridge.

According to eyewitnesses at a nearby mosque who alerted the Kottakkal railway gate staff, a group of more than five monkeys was swinging from the overhead traction wires when the high-tension cable suddenly snapped. Following the alert, several trains were immediately halted at Vadakara station as a precautionary safety measure.

The disruption caused major delays to five major train services --the Kannur–Ernakulam Intercity Express, the Kasaragod–Thiruvananthapuram Vandebharat Express, the Kannur–Shoranur Passenger, the Chennai Mail and the Mumbai Lokmanya Tilak–Ernakulam Duronto Express.

A technical team rushed to the spot from Koyilandy and managed to implement a temporary fix by 5.00 pm, allowing the stranded trains, led by the Vandebharat Express, to resume their journeys. Railway officials stated that a specialised team would later carry out comprehensive repairs to fully restore the overhead network infrastructure.