A railway employee on Saturday died in an accident that took place at the Tatanagar Electric Loco Shed, about half a kilometer away from the Tatanagar Railway Station.

Eyewitnesses said that the deceased, 45-year-old Binod Mahato, was trying to shift a wheel of a locomotive with the help of an overhead ceiling crane when the accident took place.

“One of the parts of the heavy crane broke and it hit Mahato's head who was standing on the floor. He bleeded and collapsed on the ground,” an eyewitness said.

He was rushed to the Khasmahal-based Tatanagar Railway Hospital, where he was declared as brought dead.

Mahato, a resident of Pramathanagar in Parsudih, worked as a technician at the Tatanagar Electric Loco Shed for more than seven years.

A chaos prevailed at the loco shed spot soon after the accident.

The crane was immediately stopped and work came to a grinding halt at the spot.

Station director of Tatanagar H.K. Balmuchu said, “Such a mishap took place for the first time at the electric loco shed. A probe has been initiated in this regard.”

Mahato’s body was sent to MGM Medical College at Dimna for post-mortem, which according to railway sources, will be conducted under the supervision of a medical board.

The Tatanagar Electric Loco Shed under Chakradharpur division of South Eastern Railway (SER) carries out maintenance and repair work of electric locomotives.