MIRYANG, South Korea, July 15 (Yonhap) -- A high-speed train from Seoul was forced to stop in the southeastern city of Miryang on Friday after passengers complained of smoke rising from the back of the train, railroad officials said.

The KTX-Sancheon, the first locally made high-speed train that runs at a speed of up to 300 kilometers per hour, came to an abrupt halt Friday morning in this city 386 km southeast of Seoul on its way to Masan on the south coast, according to the train's operator, Korea Railroad Corp. (KORAIL).

A total of some 180 passengers quickly got off the train, only after which KORAIL announced the smoke was caused by a short circuit.

One passenger, who gave only his last name Kim, said some travelers in the back of the train were not able to breathe properly due to the smoke that filled the carriage.

"A manufacturing flaw seems to have caused the smoke," said a KORAIL official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. All passengers were later transferred to another train for the rest of their journey.

KTX-Sancheon trains have faced numerous other technical flaws in recent months. In May, one such train stopped abruptly near the city of Gimcheon, some 234 km southeast of Seoul, due to an apparent malfunction in its brake system. Another KTX-Sancheon train derailed near Gwangmyeong Station, south of Seoul, in February due to a combination of human mistakes, including the loss of a nut in a device that controls the track movement for trains.