A TEENAGE boy suffered serious burns when he was electrocuted by as many as 25,000 volts in the railway depot next to the town’s train station.
The 16-year-old from Rugby is in the intensive care unit at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham where his condition was described on Wednesday as stable.
Police and paramedics told The Observer they were called to the depot on Hunters Lane just before 10pm on Tuesday.
The boy was said to have burns his neck, shoulders and feet after coming into contact with high voltage cables at the Network Rail depot where he was believed to have been playing with two friends.
Neither of them were not hurt, a spokesman for British Transport Police told us.
“Officers will be speaking to them in due course to ascertain further details about exactly what happened,” the spokesman added.
“At this stage we don’t believe there are any suspicious circumstances and the incident appears to have been the result of a tragic accident.
“Officers are also reminding people of the dangers posed by the railway network which includes overhead power lines and fast moving trains.
“British Transport Police and Network Rail work hard to educate people about the dangers and urges people to keep away from railway lines and all railway property at all times.”
A spokesman for Network Rail told us it was investigating how the three boys got into the depot.
He also said the railway line had to be closed for an hour a half while the boy was treated at the scene.
“Accessing the railway without permission is extremely dangerous with many hazards which pose a serious risk to life, including overhead power lines which carry 25,000v of electricity.
“We work closely with British Transport Police to educate the public on how to safely access and use the railway and our advice is clear – only enter areas which are clearly marked for public use.”
In June 2004 a 13-year-old boy from New Bilton had what was described at the time as a miracle escape after falling 30ft from a bridge over Newbold Road through high voltage overhead railway power lines and onto the track, suffering serious burns and broken bones.
