Living in England, our train journeys are usually a crowded, sweaty and unpleasant experience to say the least.
But it’s probably fair to say we don’t usually fear for our lives when we travel on the 18:14 Northern Rail service from Manchester to Leeds.
For one teenager in Mumbai though, the same cannot be said, as she fell from her train carriage into the path of an oncoming train.
You can watch the terrifying moment here:
The 17-year-old teen, named locally as Pooja Bhosale, was travelling on the train between Ghatkopar and Vikhroli at 3pm (local time) on Monday October 1 when the incident happened.
She can be seen standing in the doorway of the train carriage, seemingly care-free with her headphones in while observing her surroundings.
Bhosale then appears to look for something in her bag before attempting to change her position, moving her arm from behind her to the door of the carriage.
However, she’s unable to grab onto anything and slips as a result, causing her to fall out of the carriage at the same time a train comes hurtling towards her in the opposite direction.
Luckily, a fellow passenger acts immediately and upon seeing what’s happening, he reaches out and grabs the girl’s arm, preventing her from hitting the ground.
She’s left dangling from the train carriage whilst the other train passes, curling her body up from the ground, before the heroic man manages to pull her back up to safety.
There’s no doubt the passenger’s quick-thinking saved the teen’s life, and the 17-year-old was quick to thank him.
Pooja, from Diva, told the Mumbai Mirror:
I had just put out my hand. I am unable to remember what happened after that. But I am lucky that people travelling in the same compartment reacted in time and not only saved me, but also my phone.
The Mumbai Railway Police have launched an investigation into the incident, to see what caused it and what can be done to prevent such things happening in the future.
Reports claim Pooja was talking with a friend on the phone as she stood close to the edge of the carriage, which could have distracted her.
Thankfully the teen reached her destination safely, but required treatment at the Jivdani Hospital after suffering injuries to her hand.
Sachin Bhalode, senior divisional security commissioner at Central Railway Mumbai Division, said:
After Bhosale alighted from the train at Diva, railway authorities acted promptly and sent her to hospital. Further investigations are on.
Pooja isn’t the only person to have had a close call when it comes to trains. One woman had to be saved by fellow commuters when she got trapped in a train door, also in Mumbai.
You can watch the shocking footage here:
As the train pulls away from the station, the woman’s clothes gets caught in the train door, resulting in the train dragging her along with it.
Luckily, she only suffered minor injuries due to the heroic actions of her fellow commuters, who ran alongside the train to rescue her.
Both of these stories could have ended much differently, so it’s always important to remain vigilant and be aware of your surroundings.
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A Broadcast Journalism Masters graduate who went on to achieve an NCTJ level 3 Diploma in Journalism, Lucy has done stints at ITV, BBC Inside Out and Key 103. While working as a journalist for UNILAD, Lucy has reported on breaking news stories while also writing features about mental health, cervical screening awareness, and Little Mix (who she is unapologetically obsessed with).