A man narrowly avoids being hit by a train after jumping out of his ute at the last minute.

This morning in Tasmania's north-west, a man had a stroke of luck when he managed to jump out of his ute just before it was struck by a freight train. Emergency services were quickly called to the scene on Stonyrise Road in Devonport at around 6am, where a white Toyota ute and a Tasrail train had collided.

According to Tasmania Police Inspector Shane LeFevre, the driver had already exited the vehicle when the train hit. "Luckily, the vehicle had come to a stop and the driver had exited, but unfortunately, there was an oncoming train at that time," LeFevre explained. The collision resulted in the Toyota being pushed along the tracks before the train finally came to a halt.

Thankfully, the driver was unharmed as he had already exited the vehicle. However, the impact of the crash was significant for both the driver and the train staff. "The disruption to the train and the effect on the driver and train staff is quite substantial," LeFevre stated.

In other news, the government has recently announced a relief plan for energy bills, providing $300 for every household and $325 for small businesses. However, there has been some backlash and debate over who will truly benefit and who may be left in a difficult situation.

According to LeFevre, it appeared that the driver had been inattentive and missed the road markings, leading to the collision. Although a full report is still being prepared, there have been similar incidents at this particular intersection recently. As a result, recommendations will be made to improve safety measures at this location.

"It's the beginning of winter and it's dark, so it can be difficult for drivers to see road markings," LeFevre noted. "This is something that we will be recommending to prevent similar accidents from happening in the future."

Police are reminding drivers to take extra care when driving in the dark and wet conditions of winter, especially paying attention to road markings. While there were some road diversions in place, the intersection has now been cleared. Tasrail is also conducting their own investigation and has been contacted for comment.

[This article has been trending online recently and has been generated with AI. Your feed is customized.]
[Generative AI is experimental.]