“Old Street stn northwest entrance” by Sunil060902 – Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

British Transport Police and Transport for London are investigating how two men were struck by an underground train at Old Street tube station in the early hours of Sunday morning.

A 32 year old man from Manchester is in a critical but stable condition after the accident.

The other man, who was 35 years old and from London, died after being taken to the Royal London Hospital.

British Transport Police said they are not treating the incident as suspicious, but they are seeking witnesses.

British Transport Police investigating. Image: BTP

They believe it to have been a ‘tragic accident,’ but wish ‘to put together a fuller picture of what happened.’

Investigating officer Detective Sergeant Adrian Naylor said:

I am keen to speak to anyone who was at the station or on the platform when the incident happened to help us understand how the two men came to be struck by a train. If you witnessed the incident please get in touch with us.

The London Evening Standard is reporting that the two men were brothers and one may have gone to the rescue of the other after he had dropped something from the platform and gone to retrieve it.

It’s understood that the man who went to help was the one who died.

Political editor and journalist Léonie Chao-Fong was at the scene of the incident and photographed the response of the emergency services which she distributed on Twitter.

A BTP spokesman said:

Our officers were called to Old Street station at 12.22am on Sunday following reports of a person being struck by a train.

On arrival officers discovered two men on the tracks with serious injuries. The men – one aged 32 from Manchester and the other aged 35 from London – were treated at the scene by colleagues from the London Ambulance Service and then taken to Royal Free Hospital in a critical condition.

The 35-year-old man from London died in hospital later that day. The 32-year-old from Manchester remains in a stable but critical condition.

Officers are not treating the incident, which appears to be a tragic accident, as suspicious.

Transport for London said:

At 00:21 hours on Sunday two men were involved in a collision with a train on the southbound track at Old Street station.
Emergency services attended the scene and the men were taken to Royal Free Hospital. Police colleagues described the incident as non-suspicious, and we are working with them on a thorough investigation.

British Transport Police appeal

Anyone with information is asked to call on 0800 405040, or text 61016. Information can also be passed anonymously to independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555111. In all calls, please quote incident reference TSUB/B3 of 30/03/15.

Update 31/3/2015

Nick Mann’s wife pays tribute to ‘perfect’ husband who died saving brother from oncoming Tube train