The works committee at the SFM rail operator issued a statement yesterday which claimed that the train fire at Intermodal Station in Palma on Tuesday "was not an isolated incident".
The fire was in the roof a carriage and was caused by an explosion in the overhead pantograph. The works committee has drawn attention to other incidents. It refers to a pantograph fire when a train was exiting the tunnel in Palma, to various episodes on the Son Rullan tracks involving the overhead cable, and to a fire at the Son Costa substation.
The committee is insisting that SFM management checks that the subcontract for maintenance is supported by there being sufficient numbers of personnel and by their training. The SFM workers believe that there is a lack of personnel and that the maintenance should in any event not be subcontracted to companies where work is "precarious".
The subcontracting company has a "chronic" shortage of personnel, the works committee alleges. With the incident on Tuesday, it was therefore not possible to get an "adequate response".
SFM, concludes the committee, must "guarantee the safety of passengers and workers".