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Journalism of Courage
Pulling the alarm chain to stop a train is easy, but resetting it to resume the journey isn’t as simple. In a heartstopping video that shows just how challenging it can be, a train’s guard is seen putting his life at risk by climbing onto a narrow girder of a bridge to restore the alarm system.
After a passenger recently triggered the emergency brake of the Chamarajanagar-Tirupati Express by pulling the chain, N Vishnumoorthy, a senior guard, had to walk on the railings of the Srirangapatna girder bridge near the Srirangapatna railway station to retore it. The video shows Vishnumoorthy standing on the narrow girder and examining the system, before stretching out to restore the alarm with just one foot on a girder.
“By risking his life he walked on the girder bridge without any walkway and restored the chain that was stuck to last vehicle board. He could complete this difficult job in 10 minutes,” an official release said.
As the footage went viral, many lauded Vishnumoorthy on social media. The train’s guard was also rewarded by the South Western Railways for his bravery with Rs 5,000.
After restoring the system, Vishnumoorthy also caught the passenger who had pulled the alarm chain. The passenger turned out to have pulled the chain without any valid reason, and was handed over to Railway Protection Force to face action.
