Friday, October 23, 2015

Was mystery man killed by train in Milnsbridge a lost Ethiopian asylum seeker? - Huddersfield Examiner


The man, in his late teens or early 20s, died after being hit by a train close to the Milne viaduct

The railway viaduct in Milnsbridge
The railway viaduct in Milnsbridge
A man killed when he was hit by a train in Huddersfield may be a young asylum seeker.
The man in his late teens or early 20s died when he was struck by the 5.50pm First TransPennine Express train travelling from Scarborough to Liverpool last Thursday.
The incident happened very close to the Milne viaduct above Milnsbridge at 7.45pm as the train was approaching Slaithwaite station.
The coroner’s officer who went to the scene was Malcolm Dyson who is usually based in Bradford.
He said there was no formal identity as yet for the victim.
But he added: “We are liaising with Kirklees Social Services and we believe he may be a young asylum seeker from Ethiopia.
“We just don’t know what happened yet, if it was deliberate act or if he was just walking on the track to get somewhere.”
Mr Dyson said an inquest cannot be opened until the man has been formally identified.
And he said that if he did come from Ethiopia it may that his family would want his body to be repatriated to his home country.
British Transport Police said the man’s death is not being treated as suspicious.
But the tragedy deeply affected officers from Huddersfield Rural police who were sent to the scene of the tragedy.
Slaithwaite Railway Station platform.
They said on Facebook: “If you are parents or grandparents or great grandparents, or teachers, or guide leaders or scout leaders or youth workers – if you are in a position where you can speak to children, teenagers or young adults then please speak to them about the deadly dangers of train lines.
“They are not for playing on, they are not for short cuts, they are not places to hang out anywhere near.
“They are for trains. Just trains.
After the man’s death the railway line was closed for two hours with trains cancelled in both directions from Huddersfield and from Stalybridge to Huddersfield.
The train driver was given time off after the incident.
A spokeswoman for First TransPennine Express said: “He was immediately stepped down and has been put in contact with our support services. We offer counselling, time off and other services to our drivers in these unfortunate circumstances to help them recover from the shock and return to work.”

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