Visakhapatnam: A major accident was prevented by an alert loco-pilot while travelling from Visakhapatnam to Tatanagar via Pendurthi.

On Wednesday, when a group of railway staff were carrying out work near the track, an electric pole slanted towards a bunch of overhead equipment wires. The incident injured two railway employees and another person and the condition of one person is said to be serious.

In the meantime, Tatanagar Express was proceeding towards Pendurthi-Kothavalasa.

An alert loco-pilot noticed electric wires being snapped from the tilted pole and applied brakes just a two-metre away from the incident spot.

By applying emergency brakes at the right time after taking note of the obstruction from a distance, the loco-pilot averted a major potential accident.Regular services in the sections were disrupted temporarily until track was cleared and snapped wires were removed.