The MTR Corporation apologized Wednesday after two incidents at Lam Tin Station which disrupted services in less than 15 hours, pledging a thorough investigation.
The station was hit with a second brief closure this morning as the electrical room started smoking around 8.55am — less than a day after a trackside fire Tuesday evening.
Following the incident, service on the Kwun Tong line gradually returned to normal about an hour later.
Speaking to the press this noon, MTR Corp's deputy director of operations engineering maintenance Lee Kim-hung said the morning incident was caused by overheating wires in the station's electrical room.
As for Tuesday's fire, he said it was triggered by a short circuit in the insulation of a switch next to the tracks at Lam Tin station.
Lee stressed that the rail operator will investigate whether the incidents are linked and report its findings and fixes to the government.
Government requests report within a month
Secretary for Transport and Logistics Mable Chan said the government was highly concerned and had requested the MTR to carry out a thorough review of system safety and submit a report within a month.
She has asked the MTR's operations director to investigate the causes and review equipment, maintenance procedures and staffing. Chan also urged the operator to adopt more technology, including temperature monitoring to flag problems earlier.
Lawmaker Cheung Pui-kong said the two incidents at the same station just over 15 hours apart raised questions about the operator’s inspection, maintenance and risk warning systems. He called on MTR to inspect components across the entire Kwun Tong line and to release its findings to the public as soon as possible.
Cheung urged the MTR to offer extra compensation, such as a free local ticket for eligible affected passengers.
