Montgomery County firefighters were on the scene of an apparent arcing insulator in the Red Line Metro tunnel north of the Bethesda station. Firefighters were called to the station at about 1 p.m. Tuesday for the report of a fire on the track. MCFRS spokesperson Pete Piringer said there was no fire, but that Metro officials have advised firefighters of an arcing insulator about 200 feet north of the Bethesda station platform. Metro has closed the track and is now single-tracking between the Bethesda and Medical Center stations. A little after 1:20 p.m., Metro advised MCFRS that it had the situation under control. According to emergency scanner communications, Metro had to turn a train back because of smoky conditions in the tunnel. Reports of smoke, often caused by arcing insulators, are a frequent occurrence in the tunnel because of leaking problems with the tunnel's roof. Metro plans to close off the section for 14 weekends next year to fix the tunnel. Firefighters responded to a similar arcing insulator incident near the Bethesda station just a week ago, the last time the area saw significant rain. The Bethesda station is still open.
Arcing Insulator Causes Smoky Conditions On Red Line Near Bethesda
