KUALA LUMPUR: Hundreds of passengers on the Kelana Jaya Line light-rail transit (LRT) were jolted when one of its trains suddenly braked in a tunnel.
The incident on the first day of Hari Raya Aidilfitri, left many dazed and slightly bruised, as the train heading towards Gombak screeched to a halt between the Dang Wangi and Kampung Baru stations at 11.20pm last night (Monday).
One of the passengers on board was a journalist with a prominent media house, on his way home.
He told the New Straits Times that the affected train first braked hard, then relaxed and finally made a grinding full stop.
"Many standing passengers, even some of those seated, were caught off-guard and were 'flung about' in their coaches.
"Some appeared traumatised but fortunately, no one seemed to be seriously injured," he said.
He added that after a brief stop, the train continued its journey to the Kampung Baru station, and then to the KLCC station.
"While at the KLCC station, a staff member clad in baju melayu, complete with songkok and holding a walkie-talkie ushered all passengers out of the train.
"We were advised to catch the next train, while the affected train moved on empty, towards Gombak," he said.
The journalist added there were no announcements made nor any explanation given to passengers, following the incident.
The NST immediately relayed the message to train operator Prasarana Malaysia Berhad, but the infrastructure company has yet to respond.
Last night's incident is near the vicinity of a head-on collision between two LRT trains – one full-loaded with passengers and another empty one – in a tunnel between KLCC and Kampung Baru stations, at 8.45pm on May 24.
It left 213 passengers injured, 47 of them seriously.
Prasarana owns and operates the country's urban Rapid Rail services that include three LRT networks, the KL Monorail and the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line.
Prasarana also owns and operates the Rapid Bus services in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Penang and Pahang.