In a heart-stopping incident that has left the nation in awe, a mother's lightning-fast presence of mind saved five lives, including those of her two young children, at Shahpur Patori railway station in Bihar's Samastipur district on Friday afternoon. A video of the terrifying near-tragedy has since gone viral on social media, with people calling it nothing short of a miracle.
The drama unfolded on Platform No. 2, when three women and two small children were attempting to cross the railway track. Without warning, a high-speed goods train barrelled down the same track, leaving them with no room and no time to run. The elevated height of the platform cut off any escape route. Bystanders on the platform watched in horror, screaming helplessly as the train bore down on the group.
What happened next stunned everyone present. Instead of panicking, the mother acted with extraordinary composure. She pulled her two children tightly to her chest, shielding them with her own body, and simultaneously instructed the two other women to press themselves flat into the narrow gap between the platform edge and the tracks. She then covered her children, positioning herself as a human barrier between them and the oncoming train, fully aware that even the slightest outward movement of any limb could prove fatal.
For the next few agonising minutes, all five remained pressed motionless against the platform as the fully loaded goods train thundered past at full speed. Parts of the train made contact with the mother's body. The deafening roar of the wheels and the force of the displaced air created conditions that felt, by all accounts, like staring death in the face. Yet the mother did not loosen her grip on her children for a single moment.
When the train had finally passed, fellow passengers rushed forward and pulled all five to safety. Miraculously, all survived. The mother sustained abrasions and minor injuries where the train had grazed her, but her children and the two other women were completely unhurt.
Quick-thinking passengers on the platform captured the incident on their mobile phones. The footage clearly shows the group pressed against the platform as the train passes, and their safe emergence once it clears.
