Train mows down three T.N. workers on bridge in Kerala; one missing

Tragic train accident in Kerala claims lives of three railway workers, search underway for fourth victim in river.

Three persons hired by the Railways for clearing waste from the tracks were mowed down by a train on the Bharathapuzha bridge at Shoranur in Palakkad district of Kerala on Saturday (November 2, 2024). A search is on for a fourth person, who reportedly fell into the river after being hit by the train.

The victims were identified as Lakshmanan, Valli and Rani. They hail from Villupuram in Tamil Nadu.

They were part of a 10-member group hired by the Railways for cleaning the tracks. They were crossing the steel girder bridge towards the Shoranur Junction side when the Kerala Express (train no. 12626) from New Delhi to Thiruvananthapuram hit them fatally at 3.05 p.m.

Instead of moving to the trolley refuge – the safe space provided by the side of the tracks – they ran towards the advancing train in a row in the hope of hitting land before the train could reach the bridge.

They could not see the train as there was a sharp curve a little over 100 metres from the bridge. Because of the curve and the bridge, the Railways has a speed restriction of 70 kmph in the area. The train, according to Railways sources, was running at 66 kmph when the tragedy took place.

The loco pilot, who too did not have a visibility of more than 100 metres to the bridge, reportedly applied emergency brakes on seeing the workers.

The first woman had only five metres to clear the bridge when she was fatally knocked down by the train. The train, according to sources, had reduced the speed to 20 kmph when it hit the second woman. The train halted on the bridge about 15-20 metres after it hit the man.