OSAKA -- A man trying to collect coins after having fallen out of his wheelchair died after being hit by a train in a railway crossing on Thursday morning in Habikino, Osaka Prefecture, police said.
None of the passengers on the train were injured in the incident.
According to police, the man started to cross the railway line after the railway-crossing alarm had started ringing at about 10:50 a.m.
He was stuck inside the crossing area when the barrier descended, having failed to make his way safely under it. After trying to raise the bar by himself, the man lost his balance and fell down.
The incoming train, run by the Kinki Nippon Railway Co., struck the man as he tried to collect some coins that he had lost on the ground, police said.
Despite being taken to a hospital, he died soon afterward.
Police are now trying to identify the man, who appeared to be around 60 years old. The name "Takamatsu" was written on his underwear.
Officials of the railway operator said that there is a button that people trapped inside a crossing area can push to alert train engineers of an emergency but that nothing catering to disabled people has been installed.
They also said that sensors to detect large objects such as cars trapped inside a crossing are only able to detect objects that are at least 70 cm tall and that they did not detect the victim and his wheelchair.