Selfies from trains ends in disaster

By Prasad Rukmal

Colombo, November 13 (Daily Mirror) - A Korean tourist who had attempted to take a selfie from a moving train ended in disaster.

The foreigner travelling by the Badulla bound Udarata Menike express on Monday night (11) had bumped against and iron post on a railway boundary when he attempted to take a selfie standing off the footboard and hanging onto the handle near the Haputale railway station.

Police said the injured tourist was rushed to Diyathalawa hospital and transferred in critical condition to the Badulla Teaching Hospital. He was identified as Sholy Tong Bae, a 61-year-old Korean tourist.

Meanwhile a young woman from Ratgama area travelling to Ella with several others by the Badulla bound night mail had fallen off the moving train when she attempted to board the moving train after taking a selfi at Haputale railway station.

She had alighted from the train that halted at Haputale, and standing on the platform taken a selfie and attempted to board the train that had started. She had fallen off the train which was gathering speed and received serious injuries in a lower limb.

She was admitted to the Badulla Teaching Hospital.

Senior Medical Officer of the Emergency Treatment Unit in Badulla Teaching Hospital Dr. Palitha Rajapakse said the Korean tourist had received serious head injuries.

He said several tourists had been critically injured in their attempt to take selfies from moving trains recently and that it needs attention of the railway officials.

OIC Haputale Police CI Sepala Ratnayake is conducting further investigations.