Updated: Friday, 16 Oct 2009, 8:57 PM PDT
Published : Friday, 16 Oct 2009, 12:24 PM PDT
Posted by: Dennis Lovelace, Scott Coppersmith
Los Angeles (myFOXla.com) - A 6-month-old baby miraculously survived a train hitting his
stroller, which rolled onto the tracks when his mother let go for
an instant.
The escape was captured on security camera footage that shows
the red, three-wheeled stroller plunging off a station platform
just as the commuter train pulls in, and the mother's panicked
lunge to grab it.
The train pushed the stroller about 130 feet (40 meters)
along the tracks before it stopped, but it did not go under the
train.
The baby, who was strapped into the stroller, received only a
bump on the head.
Police said they released the video, which was captured last
Thursday at a suburban station in the southern city of Melbourne,
to underscore the need for people to be extra safety conscious when
using the train system.
The dramatic footage led news bulletins across Australia and
was shown internationally, and on YouTube.
Police have not identified the mother, who wished to remain
anonymous, and say the incident was an accident.
"It's amazing how many people get too close to the tracks
despite the dangers," Sgt. Michael Ferwerda told reporters. "We've
had a lucky escape and it is a chance for commuters to heed
warnings to be more careful."
The security footage shows the mother stopping on the
platform with the stroller facing the tracks. She lets go of the
stroller's handle without applying the brake, and appears to hitch
her pants with both hands.
The stroller's front wheel drifts toward the track, and the
stroller rolls toward the edge, flipping over as it hits the
tracks. The mother spots it just before it pitches over the side,
and lunges forward -- too late.
The train pulls into the station, and the mother clutches her
face in apparent panic and devastation. As the train stops,
onlookers rush forward. The whole incident took about seven
seconds.
Paramedic Jon Wright said the baby received only minor
injuries and was returned to his mother within a few minutes of the
accident occurring.
"Apparently he needed a feed and a nap," Wright was quoted as
saying by the Sun Herald newspaper. "Luckily he was strapped into
his pram at the time, which probably saved his life. I think the
child's extremely lucky,"
Connex, the privately owned train operator said the driver
was being offered counseling for possible trauma caused by the
incident.