13 August 2023 , 23:01
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Idiotic members of the public are dicing with death at level crossings - including a dad who let his children play on the live tracks.
Railway bosses have released CCTV of people risking their lives at footpath crossings in Worcestershire and the West Midlands as a safety warning to others. Disturbing footage shows one dad allowing his two young girls to play on the line pointing out the "pretty hills" in the distance to them on April 3 this year.
They were caught on camera on the tracks for over a minute and a half and the dad can be seen looking at his phone even after his daughter says "a train is coming". In another worrying clip, a teenager can be seen doing one-armed press ups in the middle of a crossing while loud music plays in the background on April 4.
The man could be seen looking at his phone while his young kids played (Network Rail / SWNS)Three days earlier, a dog walker was caught on camera encouraging their two dogs to sit on the tracks while an onlooker takes a photo of them. Another example shows a primary school boy on a scooter who is seen rushing in front of an oncoming train which thunders by seven seconds later on May 18.
Other children were captured placing ballast stones on the track so they are run over by trains. Network Rail said the six different incidents included in the video are just a handful of examples of dangerous behaviour.
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A young man exercises oblivious to the dangers (Network Rail / SWNS)They said nearly 50 cases of misuse have been either reported by train drivers or caught on hidden cameras in Worcestershire and the West Midlands so far in 2023. Alexandra France, Network Rail Level crossing safety manager, said: "I can’t downplay the danger they were in – with serious injury or worse a huge possibility."