During an evacuation on the Odesa railway, 19-year-old conductor Ilona Vovk died. She was hit by an oncoming train, which was also heading to its evacuation stop; in addition, a passenger was injured, UNN reports with reference to the Ministry of Communities and Territories Development.
Details
As reported by the agency, the enemy attacked the railway again tonight. A drone hit the locomotive of a suburban train on the Prydniprovska railway. Thanks to the timely stop of the train and organized evacuation, there were no casualties among passengers and the locomotive crew.
At the same time, during an evacuation on the Odesa railway, conductor Ilona Vovk died. She was hit by an oncoming train, which was also heading to its evacuation stop. Another passenger sustained injuries of moderate severity.
The Ministry of Communities and Territories Development emphasized that evacuation during drone threats for passenger trains saves lives, but at the same time can pose critical danger with the slightest carelessness.
A thorough investigation into the circumstances of the accident is currently underway. Representatives of "Ukrzaliznytsia" are in contact with medics and are monitoring the condition of the injured passenger. We express our sincere condolences to the family, friends, and colleagues of Ilona Vovk
Russia attacked railways in two regions and injured a train driver and his assistant14.03.26, 08:59
Additionally
Oleksandr Pertsovskyi, Chairman of the Board of Ukrzaliznytsia, confirmed that an investigation is currently underway into how and why existing safety algorithms did not prevent this danger, and how some circumstances overlapped with others. However, he assured that "Ilona acted bravely and at the moment of the tragedy - she was heading to help passengers."
Ilona Vovk is an extremely painful loss that the railway family suffered this night. The 19-year-old girl was just starting her path as a conductor. She dreamed of becoming a railway worker, was proud that she had completed an internship and was starting her first full-fledged trips. She was very actively involved in our youth railway community - her activity was noticed by our HR team, and Ilona was selected along with colleagues to undergo an internship in Germany (this photo is from there). Everything was ahead - she was passionate about her work. After the foreign internship, she wanted to work specifically in Ukraine at Ukrzaliznytsia
He emphasized that this fateful night of March 22 is being analyzed in detail.
Enemy strikes on rolling stock force passengers to evacuate so as not to leave them trapped (yes, tonight, timely evacuation on the Prydniprovska railway saved both the crew and passengers when a UAV hit a locomotive). On the Odesa railway, fatal circumstances led to an oncoming train fatally injuring Ilona, who was conducting the evacuation. The investigation is ongoing into how and why existing safety algorithms did not prevent this danger, and how some circumstances overlapped with others. Every detail is very important to continue working in the extraordinary conditions in which our crews operate today. However, we already know and it is important to say this: Ilona acted bravely and at the moment of the tragedy - she was heading to help passengers