Irish tourist falls to death from moving train on Thailand’s Death Railway

The man, who entered Thailand on Monday, was identified as 45-year-old Patrick Ward, AP reported.

Ward traveled by rail with a tour group from Bangkok to Kanchanaburi Town on a route called The Burma Railway, where the Bridge on the River Kwai is located. The bridge was made famous by a 1950s novel and film called The Bridge on the River Kwai.

The railroad, which connects Thailand to Burma, was built by forced labor during the Japanese occupation in World War II and is known as the “death railway” because more than 12,000 Allied prisoners of war and tens of thousands of forced laborers died during its construction.

According to witnesses, when the train slowed down at a scenic spot, Ward opened a door in the carriage and fell 7-8 meters down a slope, Police Major Kiatisak Kerdchok told AP.

An autopsy was carried out on Wednesday in Bangkok and police questioned fellow members of the tour group to investigate the cause of the accident.

Thailand received 10.9 million tourists by December 20, buoyed by a year-end rush of visitors from Europe and the United States thanks to generous visa policy.

The country expects inbound tourist numbers this year to exceed its target by 15%.