KOLKATA: A scene from the Hollywood thriller ‘Unstoppable’ played out in micro format at Ballygunge Phari on Thursday morning, when a driverless tram barreled on and rammed 10 cars at the crossing.In the movie, two men make a desperate attempt to stop a runaway train. On the rain-drenched Thursday morning, two local youths sprinted to the rescue — while one of them jumped into the driver’s cabin and stopped the tram the other shoved people out of harm’s way. A car driver suffered a minor injury but scores of lives were saved, thanks to the two friends, who have nothing much to do all day but lounge on the footpath.According to initial police reports, the tram was exiting the Ballygunge Phari depot at 9.45am when it lost power. "The tram stopped and the driver, for unknown reasons, walked off. As the power came on, the tram surged ahead, hitting several cars. An FIR has been lodged," said a Gariahat police officer. Some locals claim the driver leapt off after the tram rammed the first car, but it couldn’t be verified.Panic spread at the busy crossing as the tram trundled into rush-hour traffic like a battering ram. Pedestrians leapt out of the way and cars got crunched and crushed, leading to a traffic jam. On the other side of the signal, the area between Kwality restaurant and Dhaba, some commuters were still trying to hail the tram, unaware that it was hurtling down towards them without brakes.At this point, pavement-dwellers Dinesh Lal and Chandan Kapadia sprang into action. Dinesh, who jumped into the tram, realized he had no clue how to stop it. "I have never been in such a situation and had no idea where the brake was. There was a long handle. It was the biggest thing around. I closed my eyes and pulled it. Thankfully, the tram stopped," he said. Chandan said: "I saw the whole thing. Dinesh chased the tram and got it to stop. He saved several lives."Damaged cars lay scattered along the stretch, the drivers too shaken to react. As the tram rammed cars, they collided with other vehicles, creating a pile-up. Broken car body parts lay scattered on the road. Some cars lost wheels and bumpers, many had bonnets crushed. To add to the panic, smoke started coming out of the tram. Police arrived quickly and cleared out the area. A fire engine arrived at 10.15am and doused the flames. "It was a small fire, due to an electrical error, and was contained quickly," said a fire official.Sourish Meryson, a freelance photographer, was in a bus when it got stuck in standstill traffic. "After we realized something bizarre had happened, I got off and started walking towards Ballygunge Phari. I saw a huge crowd standing around a clutter of damaged vehicles. Up ahead, there were a few policemen, but the tram wasn’t there. Many witnesses were still trembling in fear. It was hardly 5 minutes after the accident," he told TOI.Calcutta Tramways Company MD Nilanjan Sandilya said an enquiry has been ordered. "The tram was in ‘parking’ from one lane to another. It was going out of the exit to return through the entry gate. Instead of taking the turn, it went ahead along the tracks. According to the driver, it was a mechanical fault. But if the probe finds him guilty, he will face exemplary punishment. He has been taken off duty for the day," he told TOI. CTC neither confirmed nor denied that the tram was driverless when the accident happened.Later, joint CP-HQ Rajeev Mishra said the incident possibly happened after the tram came to a stop following an electrical spark. "CTC has informed us the driver got off to check the error when the tram started moving again," he said. Transport minister Madan Mitra said the driver was suspended because a preliminary probe made out a case of "serious negligence" against him.