Particle.news
Download on the App Store

Power Bank Ignites on Tokyu Ikegami Line Train, Injuring Passenger and Briefly Halting Service

Investigators say a backpack power bank caused the blaze.

Overview

  • The fire, which started Monday around 7:30 a.m. on a train stopped at Hatanodai Station in Tokyo’s Shinagawa Ward, burned a nearby woman on her right arm.
  • After a rider hit the emergency call button, station staff responded and the Tokyo Fire Department said the flames were out about 25 minutes later.
  • Tokyu paused Ikegami Line service between Gotanda and Kamata and then restored full operations around 8:10 a.m., canceling 33 trains and affecting about 9,300 passengers.
  • Police and railway officials identified a mobile battery in a passenger’s backpack as the source on the up-bound side at Hatanodai, and they have opened a routine inquiry.
  • Outlets differed on the injured woman’s age, but they agreed on the cause, the rapid response, and the extent of the rush-hour disruption.