A New Zealand tourist was killed on Tuesday when he fell off a train onto a cliff in Thailand’s province of Kanchanaburiabout 140 kilometers from Bangkok, on a journey that follows the path of the so-called death train
The 45-year-old traveler opened the carriage door to take a “selfie” when he slipped and fell from a height of 8 meters as the train was crossing a bridge, witnesses told police, reports the “Bangkok Post” newspaper “.
The rescue teams Thailand They found the tourist alive after arriving at the place, which is difficult to access and which they reached by lowering themselves with ropes, but they were unable to revive him, publishes the portal “La Nazione”.
The train had slowed down to cross this wooden bridge, about 400 meters long, frequented by visitors to take pictures of the River eggwhich gave its name to a famous film about World War II.
The section connecting Thailand and Burma, popularly known as the death train, was built between 1940 and 1943 by civilian workers and prisoners of war arrested by Japan during World War II and was intended to supply troops and weapons to the Japanese during the Burma campaign.
It is estimated that between 180,000 and 250,000 Southeast Asian civilians and more than 60,000 Allied POWs were subjected to hard labor during construction, of which more than 100,000 died.
The story of the construction of this railroad inspired the seven-Oscar-winning 1957 film, “The Bridge on the River Kwai” (The Bridge on the River Kwai), directed by David Lean and starring Alec Guinness yes William Holden.
