Darwin 101

[stockhausen]

More than 50 people have been killed and 200 hurt after a train ran into a crowd near Amritsar in India's northern Punjab state, police told the BBC.

The victims were standing on the railway tracks watching celebrations for the Hindu festival of Dusshera, eyewitnesses told BBC Punjabi.

They did not hear the train approach as they watched a firecracker-filled effigy of the demon king Ravana burn.

Words fail me . . .

 

[LOAM]

But it seems such a logical place to hold a fireworks display

 

[Quartz]

With all the people covering the outside of the train, the driver probably couldn't see them anyway.

 

[Malevolence]

It's India, no surprise here.

 

[VincentHanna]

They were told to move back on the train tracks by officials.

 

[FoxEye]

It's India, no surprise here.

I've seen (aka been in the same room as the TV) a ton of documentaries about India, and a recurring theme is how they have absolutely no sense of self preservation, esp near railways. It's uncanny.

 

[explicit4u]

Tragic loss of life, but India has an appalling safety record with trains.

 

[Diddums]

India. Sigh.

 

[Raz]

They were told to move back on the train tracks by officials.

Yeah that's the key thing here, the people may have thought the organisers had arranged something with railway officials.

 

[Raz]

India. Sigh.

It's not India, it's those indians!

( It's ok, I'm one of them)

 

[Malevolence]

I've seen (aka been in the same room as the TV) a ton of documentaries about India, and a recurring theme is how they have absolutely no sense of self preservation, esp near railways. It's uncanny.

I know. I posted in motors about an accident a friend of mine witnessed in India. A large flatbed truck that was filled with people overturned on a busy highway and nobody bothered to stop, in fact they just carried on and drove over and through the human cargo. He said the road looked like an abattoir.

 

[Dis86]

It's not India, it's those indians!

( It's ok, I'm one of them)

Worried for your safety now.

 

[Raz]

Worried for your safety now.

Son wants to be a train driver

 

[Dis86]

Son wants to be a train driver

Lol. Not gonna knock that. All the best boys want to be!

 

[ron3003]

Some india railway cab ride vids on youtube, there's people wandering along and across the tracks virtually everywhere

 

[Orionaut]

I've seen (aka been in the same room as the TV) a ton of documentaries about India, and a recurring theme is how they have absolutely no sense of self preservation, esp near railways. It's uncanny.

Indians seem to have a very strong sense of fate. If it is their "karma" to be run over by a train then it will happen regardless of any effort on their part to avoid it. So why bother! :/

 

[Pawnless Endgame]

It's religion, no surprise here.

Fixed.

Tragic loss of life, but religion has an appalling safety record.

Fixed.

Religion. Sigh.

Fixed.

 

[Chojin]

I've noticed it's like a game of musical chairs crossing the railways in India. They don't have the patience to wait a couple of minutes for the train to pass and would rather die.

 

[Vern1961]

A similar incident happened in Spain a few years ago, albeit not such a severe death toll around 10 or 12 I think, but still very grim. I've been on trains that have hit just one person and it's not nice. Unfortunately few countries other than the UK fence off their railways which would tend to prevent casual trespass that in this case had such a tragic outcome.

RIP the victims.

 

[Minusorange]

demon king Ravana

I think he approves of this sacrifice