16-Year-Old Boy Electrocuted After Climbing Atop Train To Click Selfie

A 16-year-old boy in India was electrocuted after he climbed on top a goods train to take a selfie.

The incident took place in the southern state of Karnataka. Local media reports said the teenager was in a critical condition.

The boy, who arrived at the railway tracks in the city of Mangalore on Wednesday, saw a stationary goods train and decided to climb on top of it to get a selfie. As he stood on the train, he came in contact with the high-powered electrical lines overhead, and got hit by 25,000 volts of electricity. He was thrown off onto the railway track, the Mangalorean reported.

The victim, identified as Mohammed Dishan, was rushed to a nearby hospital, where the doctors said his condition was critical. The doctors added the boy suffered 50% burns on his body due to the electric shock, The Hindu reported.

The police arrived at the scene of the incident and launched an investigation. A senior official from the Railway Protection Force (RPF) also visited the hospital to get details of the injured teenager from his family members.

In a similar incident last year, a 13-year-old boy died after he climbed atop a train to take selfies. In this case too, the boy came in contact with a live overhead wire. The incident took place in the eastern state of Odisha. The boy and two other teenagers had entered the area where the train was stationed to take selfies. The victim climbed atop the train while the other two waited for their turn. “The teenager came in contact with the high voltage live wire when he was taking his selfie. He fell down from the coach, which also caught fire thereafter. Two of his friends who attempted to rescue him also sustained injuries. The three were immediately rushed to the nearby hospital where one succumbed to the injuries,” sources told New Indian Express at the time.

The other two boys were also injured in the incident. “They sneaked into the coach area when the beat constable was away from the spot. The condition of two others is stable and they are out of danger," senior official Kaushalendra Kishore Khadanga said.