PETALING JAYA: A review of safety aspects at all train stations, especially facilities for persons with disabilities (OKU), will be done, says the Transport Minister.
This follows a tragic incident where a blind man fell from the platform at the Titiwangsa LRT station in Kuala Lumpur, resulting in him being killed by an incoming train.
“The Transport Ministry is now working closely with all relevant parties, particularly Prasarana Malaysia Bhd, in conducting a thorough investigation,” said Anthony Loke on his Facebook page yesterday.
In the meantime, Loke said, Prasarana will implement critical safety measures to prevent such incidents from recurring. Among the measures include the installation of smart CCTV systems at all train stations capable of detecting high-risk or suspicious behaviours.
“In the long term, Prasarana is planning to install platform screen doors (PSD) across all LRT lines as part of efforts to strengthen passenger safety,” he said.
The Ampang Line (where the incident took place) was built in the 1990s, an era where PSDs were not a common feature.
“Meanwhile, passengers, including OKU, requiring additional assistance, are advised to approach Prasarana staff or any auxiliary police personnel at the station to ensure their needs are properly attended to,” he added.
Loke stressed that passenger safety and welfare remain a top priority, whereas the government is committed to ensuring a safer, more inclusive, and user-friendly public transport system for the benefit of all Malaysians.
Earlier yesterday, the Kuala Lumpur Fire and Rescue Department said in a statement that the victim was pronounced dead at the scene by Health Ministry personnel.
Its operations commander Fadil Hesam Mohd said the department’s operations centre received an emergency call at 8.38am via the MERS-999 system, informing the discovery of a body on the railway tracks,” he said in a statement.
Following the incident, Fadil said the Sentul Fire Station and Titiwangsa Fire Station were deployed to the location.
He added that investigations revealed that the victim lost his balance and fell onto the LRT tracks before being struck by a train.
“The removal of the body from the scene was carried out carefully to ensure safety and facilitate a smooth investigation,” he added.
The 7.45am incident disrupted train services at the PWTC, Titiwangsa, Sentul, and Sentul Timur LRT stations before normalcy resumed at 11am.
Prasarana subsidiary Rapid Rail Sdn Bhd provided bridging bus services to manage commuters during the disruption.
Authorities are looking at all angles, including examining the train’s operational records at the time of the incident.
Sentul district police chief ACP Ahmad Sukarno Mohd Zahari said the police are identifying the victim’s details, with the case classified as sudden death.
“The victim’s body has been taken to Hospital Kuala Lumpur for post-mortem,” he said, adding that the initial investigation found no criminal element in this incident because it appears that the victim slipped and fell, and at the same time, a train was passing on the track.
