Seoul, May 31 || Police on Saturday apprehended a man in his 60s for suspected arson inside a Seoul subway train that prompted hundreds of passengers to evacuate through a tunnel, officials said.
According to police and witnesses, the suspect allegedly set fire to pieces of clothes inside the Line No. 5 subway traveling between Yeouinaru and Mapo stations at 8:47 a.m. after boarding the train with a lighter-type torch and a fuel container, news agency reported.
More than 400 passengers escaped through the tunnel, with 21 of them being sent to the hospital for injuries, such as smoke inhalation and a fractured ankle. No serious injuries have so far been reported.
Passengers and the train conductor initially contained the flames with fire extinguishers before they were fully extinguished at about 10:24 a.m. Authorities dispatched 230 personnel, including firefighters and police officers, to the scene.