A fire inside a traction power substation at the Brookhaven MARTA station forced an evacuation Tuesday, cutting rail power and leaving Gold Line riders scrambling for buses with no word yet on when trains will run normally again. Firefighters knocked the fire down, but as of Tuesday night, the station remained closed to passengers.
Station Cleared, Power Cut as Crews Responded
MARTA confirmed that rail service was disrupted at the Brookhaven station after the substation fire broke out Tuesday, according to Atlanta News First. The transit agency said all patrons were evacuated from the station, and rail power was de-energized as crews responded to the blaze. Dekalb Fire Rescue crews were dispatched to the scene, and a Channel 2 photographer on the ground reported the smell of smoke in the air, according to WSB-TV.
Firefighters successfully extinguished the fire, though emergency personnel stayed on scene afterward to inspect the equipment and monitor conditions, per FOX 5 Atlanta. No injuries were immediately reported, the station noted.
Bus Bridge Fills the Gap, but No Timeline Yet
With the Brookhaven station shut down, MARTA set up a bus bridge between the Lenox and Chamblee stations to carry affected riders around the closure. Residual delays continued along the Gold Line while crews kept working at the station, the outlet's report added. MARTA has not given an estimated time for when normal rail service will resume or when the Brookhaven station will reopen to passengers.
MARTA provided an $8 Uber credit link for affected riders.
Part of a Rough Day Across the System
The Brookhaven fire was not an isolated headache for Atlanta transit riders that week. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported several fires, both inside and outside MARTA stations, that affected commuters. A separate fire under the train platform at Peachtree Center Station began Monday afternoon, sending smoke into the station and prompting a precautionary evacuation there as well, the newspaper reported.
At Peachtree Center, rail service resumed that same night, though the station itself stayed closed for investigation until the following morning, when normal service finally resumed. A bus bridge set up between the Five Points and Civic Center stations during that disruption was terminated just before 8 a.m., the newspaper's report noted. MARTA has not said whether the Brookhaven closure will follow a similar timeline.
