BART station fire strands 400 passengers

BART and fire officials said up to 400 passengers were stranded on a BART train at the Walnut Creek station this evening because of a fire at the station.

Firefighters received a report of the fire at 5:40 p.m. at the station at 200 Ygnacio Valley Road in Walnut Creek, Contra Costa County Fire Protection District Fire Marshal Robert Marshall said.

The fire was in an electrical room. BART police cut power to the room and firefighters put out the fire.

The stranded passengers were on a train just south of the platform, so a BART crew restored power and brought the train in.

All the passengers got off and no one was injured.

Marshal said none of the passengers were ever in any danger because the train was on the opposite end of the station from the fire.

The train was put back into service toward San Francisco. Arson is not suspected, Marshall said.

The fire affected a large part of BART’s Pittsburg/Bay Point line from Rockridge station in Oakland to Pleasant Hill.