Eritrean man killed by train in apparent accident

A man lost his life after getting hit by a train on Monday in the northwestern Swiss town of Burgdorf. The victim is a 42-year-old Eritrean national living in canton Bern.

The man was walking along the train tracks when he was caught by the train, according to local authorities, who believe the incident was an accident.

The train driver applied the emergency brake in vain.

Another recent fatality was that of a Swiss train conductor who was trapped in a train door as it was leaving Baden station.

That incident in August brought Swiss Federal Railways under scrutiny over safety measures.

Federal Railways has also rolled out measures to combat suicides on the tracks. It estimates an average of 115 people killed themselves per year between 2013 and 2017.

Switzerland has one of the largest and most extensive rail networks on the continent, with a total length of around 5,100 kilometres.