Fire Erupts Under Mexico City Metro Line, Service Halted

Flames glowed beneath an elevated stretch of Mexico City’s Metro Line 9 as a fire forced passengers off trains and shut down part of the line on Tuesday night.

X user Eduardo Ramos filmed the fire on the night of October 20 from a car just before Velódromo station, in the direction of Tacubaya. The footage shows smoke drifting around the concrete viaduct and fire burning in the structure above the road as cars and a motorcycle pass below.

The Metro said it was dealing with a fire between Velódromo and Ciudad Deportiva stations and let passengers off at earlier stations as a precaution. Service between Chabacano and Pantitlán was suspended, closing six stations, Jamaica, Mixiuhca, Velódromo, Ciudad Deportiva, Puebla and Pantitlán, while city buses carried stranded riders.

Fire chief Juan Manuel Pérez Cova said trash was burning under the bridge in the Jardín Balbuena neighborhood. Metro director Adrián Rubalcava said the flames spread to the tracks and damaged fiber-optic and high-voltage cables. Full service was restored on the morning of October 21, and Rubalcava urged people not to dump or burn trash near the Metro.