Amid heavy rain, 'Code Red' disrupts LRT 1 and 2 operations

Amid heavy rain that pounded parts of Metro Manila Thursday evening, the Light Rail Transit Lines 1 and 2 went on Code Red, with their trains immobilized.

Shortly before 7 p.m., the LRT Authority said a Code Red was declared over LRT Line 1 at 6:48 p.m., forcing the limited operation of the line.

"LRT1 - Code Red declared 6:48 p.m., all trains stop movement; will implement degraded operation, Central to Roosevelt and back only any moment," LRTA spokesman Hernando Cabrera said on his Twitter account.

A separate tweet by the LRTA said there was smoke coming from the wayside between Quirino and Pedro Gil northbound.

On Wednesday night, a fire hit the LRT-1's power line, forcing LRT-1 to start operations Thursday nearly an hour behind the usual 5 a.m. schedule.

Meanwhile, the LRT-2 similarly announced Code Red at 6:11 p.m. due to an immobilized train between Gilmore and Betty Go-Belmonte stations in Quezon City.

Cabrera earlier described Code Red as "all trains on hold position, no entry in all stations."

LRT-1 links Roosevelt in Quezon City to Baclaran, while LRT-2 links C.M. Recto in Manila to Santolan.

LRT-1 problem

Before the Code Red situation, Cabrera had advised LRT-1 riders to expect "slow and delayed train movements" due to a persistent power system problem.

He also cited a big volume of passengers and long queues due to the power system problem.

Cabrera said technicians "are doing their best so that repair works will be completed [Thursday night]." — BM, GMA News