Henashma Devi Beeharry-Ramtohul, 31, a secretary in a private clinic, met a tragic end on Saturday afternoon, May 6, in Curepipe. When she tried to cross in front of a tram arriving at the northern entrance of Curepipe station, she was violently hit. Her body was trapped between the tram and the platform of this station. Immediately, the protocol was established to call the emergency services. The staff of an ambulance of the Emergency Medical Service (Samu) who had arrived on the spot unfortunately had to note her death.
It was at around 12.40pm on Saturday 6 May that the tragic accident occurred. Henashma Devi Beeharry-Ramtohul was about to cross the rail when she was hit by a tram arriving at the northern entrance of Curepipe station. The tram captain immediately stopped his vehicle. The victim was trapped between the tram and the platform. In addition to police officers from the Curepipe Police Station, men from the Mauritius Fire and Rescue Service (MFRS) were present at the scene of the accident. Metro Express had to bring a jack from Barkly station to lift the tram.
According to cross-checked information, the victim tried to cross this track to catch up with an oncoming tram. In doing so he was hit by another vehicle coming from Port Louis. The 27-year-old train captain involved in the accident, who lives in Upper Dagotière, explained that he only saw a head against the windscreen of his vehicle and that he stopped immediately.
Metro Express Ltd (MEL) called in a vehicle from Barkly station to lift the tram involved in the accident so that the woman’s body could be removed. The body was then taken to the Victoria Hospital mortuary in Candos for an autopsy. The autopsy was conducted by Dr Sudesh Kumar Gungadin, head of the police forensic department, who attributed the death to multiple injuries.
The MEL management issued a statement late Saturday afternoon (May 6) following the unfortunate accident that claimed the life of a woman. The MEL says it is cooperating fully with the police in this investigation. It also reiterated its call to the public, tram passengers and road users to respect all safety instructions, to look both ways, to be vigilant in their surroundings when approaching crossings, junctions and intersections. The MEL would like to express its sincere condolences to the relatives of the victim.
An investigation has been opened at the Curepipe police station to shed light on the exact circumstances of this accident. Surveillance cameras will also be used for this purpose.
