61 passengers stuck in Sentosa Express rescued on Thursday night

Commuters boarding the Sentosa Express at VivoCity on Nov 2,  2012. Some 61 passengers were stranded in a Sentosa Express train on Thursday night for more than an hour after it stalled. -- PHOTO: ST FILE
Commuters boarding the Sentosa Express at VivoCity on Nov 2,  2012. Some 61 passengers were stranded in a Sentosa Express train on Thursday night for more than an hour after it stalled. -- PHOTO: ST FILE
Published
Dec 5, 2014, 8:03 am SGT
Education Correspondent
ateng@sph.com.sg

SINGAPORE - The stalling of a Sentosa monorail train on Thursday night was caused by a technical fault, said Sentosa Leisure Management in a statement Friday.

"Initial investigations indicate a technical fault which resulted in a power outage, leading to the stalling of the train,"  said Mr Koh Piak Huat, Divisional Director, Operations, Sentosa Leisure Management (SLM). It manages the Sentosa Express, the island's monorail system. 

Sixty-one passengers were stranded in the two-carriage Sentosa Express train for more than an hour before they were safely evacuated.

Some 61 passengers were stranded in a Sentosa Express train on Thursday night for more than an hour after it stalled. The affected train has since been repaired and the Sentosa Express service resumed normal operations at 7am this morning, said Mr Koh in the statement. Further investigations are ongoing.

At 10.10pm Thursday, the train bound for VivoCity came to a stop between the Imbiah and Beach stations.

A spokesman for Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC), which owns SLM, said "immediate efforts" were made to bring the 61 guests and also staff onboard the train to safety according to standard rescue procedures. This involved transferring them to a rescue train that would bring them back to the nearest Imbiah Station, she said.

"However, due to technical difficulties in moving the rescue train, the SCDF was eventually called in to assist with the rescue operations," the spokesman added.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) sent one fire engine, a red rhino, two ambulances and two supporting vehicles for the rescue operations. The first vehicle arrived within eight minutes and the last passenger was rescued around 2am. Ladders were used to allow passengers to climb down from the train.

All 61 passengers were rescued, including a 48-year-old woman who was sent to the Singapore General Hospital as she complained of discomfort.

The SCDF spokesman said for safety reasons, each passenger had to wear a helmet and be secured by a safety line before coming down the ladder.

Taxi transportation was arranged to take the passengers home.

If you were caught in the stalled Sentosa Express train last night, please get in touch with us at STshare@sph.com.sg.

Twitter user Shruthi, who was apparently one of the commuters on board the affected train, took to Twitter to share her experience. Selected tweets below:

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