Several commuters heading home after work on Monday (3 June) evening had their journeys delayed when MRT service was disrupted for about two hours.
Up to five stations on the North-South Line (NSL) had no service, causing scores of passengers to look for alternative transport.
Source: Constantine Yan on Facebook
SMRT later said the disruption was due to a lightning strike that caused a power traction fault.
Train operator SMRT first posted on Facebook about the disruption at 6.08pm on Monday, saying there was no train service from Yew Tee to Woodlands.
Source: SMRT on Facebook
This was due to a “traction power fault”, it added.
Passengers were told that bridging bus services were available, and advised to take alternative routes, for example the Thomson-East Coast Line (TEL).
At 6.25pm, SMRT clarified that the disruption was in the southbound direction — i.e. from Yew Tee heading towards Woodlands.
Source: SMRT on Facebook
At 7.17pm, SMRT updated that the disruption had been extended from Choa Chu Kang to Woodlands.
Source: SMRT on Facebook
Passengers were advised to take the TEL or Circle Line (CCL).
A passenger who was at Yew Tee station said on Facebook that his train had stopped at the station and staff had told commuters to head to Bukit Panjang for a free shuttle bus.
He also shared photos of the large crowd that had been stranded outside Yew Tee station.
Source: Constantine Yan on Facebook
Another commuter shared images of the hordes of people inside the station who seemed to have difficulty getting out due to the crowds.
Source: jasmine.ng23 on TikTok
Though signs showed that there were free bus services available, many people were queueing for taxis and private-hire vehicles, she said.
Another commuter said that his train “broke down” in Kranji station at 6.30pm.
He then saw a number of Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) firefighting vehicles outside the station.
Source: Steven Yong on Facebook
Another commuter at Kranji station saw firefighters walking into the restricted area of the platform as a train stood there stationary.
Source: @thealandopez on TikTok
This made netizens wonder whether a fire had occurred, though he said he saw no evidence of any fire.
A passenger named Han Yixin (transliterated from Mandarin) told 8world News that he saw four or five firefighters running around with fire extinguishers.
He said he had set off from Yew Tee towards Woodlands, but his train stopped at Kranji at 5.45pm and passengers were told to disembark at 5.51pm.
He didn’t take any of the bridging bus services, but he said that even if he did, his journey would be delayed by about one hour.
In an initial Facebook post at 6.30pm, SMRT said a power traction fault occurred on the NSL at about 5.50pm, which caused the disruption.
In an update at 8.50pm, SMRT said a lightning strike had caused traction power to trip.
A small fire broke out about 20m from the platform at Kranji station. It involved a power control box, SMRT added.
No injuries were reported and the causes of the fire and traction power fault are under investigation.
At 7.53pm, SMRT said that northbound trains from Woodlands to Choa Chu Kang were in service.
At 8.10pm, southbound train service resumed about two hours after the disruption started.
Source: SMRT on Facebook
The free bus services were stopped by 8.32pm, SMRT added.
Also read: Circle Line MRT Services Delayed Due To Track Fault, Up To 30 Mins Extra Travelling Time
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Featured image adapted from Steven Yong on Facebook and jasmine.ng23 on TikTok.
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