A 3 year old girl was lucky to survive a fall from a packed tourist train yesterday near Cairns. Shocked witnesses say the girls father leaped from the moving train to save his daughter yesterday afternoon.
It is thought the girl fell from the window of the Kuranda Scenic Railway about 2 km from Kuranda Station about 3.35pm yesterday afternoon. Paramedics were rushed to the scene and the child was taken to Cairns Base Hospital with minor lacerations and a fractured collarbone.
The incident was witnessed by a number of shocked tourists. Witnesses said the girls father appeared very shaken by the incident, although he refused to be interviewed. Witnesses say the girl was in surprisingly high spirits immediately after the incident.
Queensland Rail declined to speculate on how the accident may have happened, although a full safety investigation will be launched. All the regular announcments about safety and not to put any part of ones body outside the train were made.
The service returned to Kuranda Station before departing at 4.15pm and finally completing it’s journey 1 hour late at Freshwater Station. Most passengers were observed to be happy the afternoon was over. The train runs 2 services each day between Cairns and Kuranda. It meanders through breathtaking World Heritage Listed Rainforest and visits such highlights as the world famous Kuranda Falls. Most passengers elect to combine a train journey with the equally popular Kuranda Skyrail Cable Car.
The popular trains safety record has again been questioned after repeated accidents in the last couple of years. The Kuranda Scenic Rail service has only been back in service for 8 weeks after an incident in February, caused by a landslide dumping tonnes of soil and rock over the tracks injured 6 people. Unfortunately the trains survival is linked to that of residents of Kuranda who fail to see their business surviving life without the train delivering thousands of tourists each week.