It was terrible, we were all so scared: Passengers recall Mumbai monorail chaos

Passengers who were stuck inside the Mumbai monorail that came to a halt following a breakdown in power supply near Mysore Park colony on Tuesday evening shared their ordeal on camera after being rescued by the fire brigade and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation in a rescue operation that lasted nearly four hours.

The 582 people that were trapped inside the monorail were all saved. Twelve people complained of dyspnea after being rescued and were taken to a hospital. Their conditions are reported to be stable and might be released soon, according to officials.

Passengers claimed that the situation inside the monorail was suffocating and the elderly and children were the worst affected.

It was awful. There was no security. All of us were terrified. Their primary goal was to allow more passengers to board the train. After being saved, an elderly traveler remarked, “There were so many people; the train was full.”

VIDEO | Maharashtra: Rescue efforts on an elevated track near Mysore Colony in Chembur, Mumbai, continue after a monorail became stuck. One of the passengers that was saved, Balkrishna Varadkar, said, “It was awful.” There was no security. All of us were terrified. They paid more attention to the picture. https://hhDSvIyHIZ — August 19, 2025, Press Trust of India (@PTI_News)

VIDEO | Mumbai: Passengers being evacuated after a Monorail got stuck on an elevated track near Mysore Colony in Chembur.

(Full video available on PTI Videos – https://t.co/n147TvrpG7) pic.twitter.com/XmLUgbawpT

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) August 19, 2025

When the train finally arrived after a 30-minute delay, passengers also complained that it was overcrowded.

“I boarded the train around 5:30 p.m. After an hour, the rescue effort began. The train carried at least five hundred people. The entire train was packed with people because this one didn’t arrive for thirty minutes,” one traveler remarked.

#WATCH | Maharashtra: A passenger, Sunil, says, “I was in the train from 5:30 PM. After an hour, the rescue effort began. The train carried at least five hundred people. This train arrived after a gap of 30 minutes, so the entire train was overloaded with passengers…” https://t.co/dRbZIl0Z8c pic.twitter.com/M1YohLdV3l — ANI (@ANI) August 19, 2025

According to another traveler, the monorail was packed with children and elderly people, and several of them suffocated.

“The passengers exhibited patience. Many children and elderly people were having problems on the train. Suffocation was the main problem inside the train,” said the passenger.

#VIEW | Maharashtra: According to a traveler who was saved from the Monorail, “The passengers were patient.” Many elderly people and children were on the train, and they were having problems. The biggest issue inside the train was suffocation. ZIl0Z8c https://t.co/dRbZIl pic.twitter.com/FtFn8ZaLvu — August 19, 2025, ANI (@ANI)

#WATCH | Maharashtra: A passenger, Sunil, says, "I was in the train from 5:30 PM. The rescue operation started after 1 hour. There were at least 500 passengers in the train. This train arrived after a gap of 30 minutes, so the entire train was overloaded with passengers…" https://t.co/dRbZIl0Z8c pic.twitter.com/M1YohLdV3l

— ANI (@ANI) August 19, 2025

The train, which runs on an elevated track, was stuck for over two hours, and suffered a “minor power supply issue”. The technical snag occurred around 6.15 pm when the train was running between Mysore Colony and Bhakti Park stations.

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde provided more details about the incident, stating that a lot of people used the monorail because the Harbour Line was blocked because of the severe rain, which resulted in crowding inside the train and a power outage.

A number of people began using the Monorail as a result of the Harbour Line’s closure. The train became overcrowded as a result, and the electricity went out. Due to the power breakdown, emergency brakes were applied and the train stopped,” said Shinde.