PAKISTAN: Scare as Elderly Man Rides Off in Locomotive

KARACHI (The Dawn), August 23, 2006: An elderly man, looking dazed and dishevelled, was arrested today for stealing a diesel locomotive from a marshalling yard on the city’s outskirts and driving it for at least 30 kilometres to apparently smash the engine into a crowded passenger train. However, railways authorities averted what would have been a fatal accident by diverting the locomotive to a loop line before bringing it to a halt. The shabbily dressed man who did not look mentally stable was a resident of Hyderabad. Police has detained the locomotive’s driver and fireman who had walked off to have tea. “If the man had managed to hit the locomotive with the Baba Farid Express from behind, he would have caused a major accident – in which he might have also been killed,” said Railways SSP Malik Afzal. They said the locomotive’s disappearance was noted on Tuesday night. “It was shortly afterwards spotted near the Landhi station where it was flagged down. But when it did not stop, the Baba Farid Express was asked to travel at a faster speed. The train engine was then promptly diverted to a loop line.” Railways divisional superintendent Mir Mohammad Khaskheli had at first sought to hush up the matter and asked police not to register a case. But police not only registered a complaint but also booked the divisional superintendent under the Pakistan Penal Code. By Arman Sabir © DAWN Group of Newspapers, 2006