Lorry overturns on railway track in Kulathupuzha, driver dead; Train disaster averted by alert couple

KULATHUPUZHA: The driver of a lorry overturned on the 50-feet-deep railway track on the Kollam-Tirumangalam route died.

A major train disaster was averted as a nearby couple alerted the accident as soon as the accident occurred in the middle of the night. The accident happened ten minutes before the Tirunelveli-Palakad Palaruvi Express passed through it. Local residents Shanmukh and his wife Vadakkuthayi were proceeding near the track and flashing a torch to signal danger. With this the train was stopped. Train traffic was disrupted for eight hours.

Driver Manikandan (34), a native of Tuticorin, died when the lorry fell on the track at the S-bend between Aryangaon and Puliyarai around 12.30 am on Sunday. Cleaner Perumal, a native of Tamil Nadu, is undergoing treatment with serious injuries.

The lorry was carrying plywood from Kollam. In the morning, railway employees and two JCBs reached the spot and removed the lorry and plywood that had fallen on the track and restored traffic.

A year and a half ago, there was a similar accident where a lorry overturned on the railway track. Tamil Nadu Puliyarai police took action.