Cape Town - A 15-year-old boy died while “train surfing” at Woodstock station on Thursday.
“He miscalculated the train’s speed and slipped. He fell and was killed,” said Metrorail regional manager Mthuthuzeli Swartz.
Surfers hold on to a carriage’s door post while running on the platform and jumping in and out of the train as it leaves or enters the station. Sometimes surfers wait until they reach the end of the platform before they jump back into the train.
The service experienced significant delays as the accident occurred at peak time. Trains on the central, Cape Flats and southern suburbs lines that run through Woodstock station were affected.
An hour later, a man crossing the lines at Kraaifontein station was hit by a train and died, said Swartz.
He appealed to parents to teach their children about safety on trains.
Police spokesman Tembinkosi Kinana said the teenager and the man’s names would not be released until their families had been told.