Carlton train tragedy: Australia’s incredible act for mother whose husband and child died in horrific train-pram crash

Kind Australians have raised almost $140,000 for the woman who lost her husband and one of her young twin daughters in a horrific train tragedy.

Anand Runwal, 40, died along with his two-year-old daughter Hinal after they were hit by a train as he desperately tried to save the twins when their pram rolled onto the tracks at Carlton station in Sydney’s south.

His other daughter, Hiya, miraculously escaped and was pulled from under the train virtually unharmed.

Daily Mail Australia previously revealed that heartbroken 39-year-old mother Poonam Runwal flew back to India to be with her extended family and bury her husband and daughter in a traditional ceremony in his hometown of Bijapur.

The tragedy prompted a former colleague of Mr. Runwal, with permission from his widow, to set up a GoFundMe page to raise $20,000 to help cover immediate costs.

But the page was flooded with generous Australians who raised $139,031 in a few days before the fundraiser was closed.

“They initially wanted to raise $20,000 to help her with her immediate expenses, but they have been overwhelmed by the response and generosity of people,” said Nadeen Ahmed, who runs the Facebook group Indians in Sydney.

Anand Runwal (right) and his wife Poonam Runwal with their two-year-old twin daughters

Hinal Runwal (left) tragically died in the disaster, while twin sister Hiya miraculously survived

‘They ended up raising nearly $140,000 in just a few days, something they never expected.

‘They raised so much that they decided to end the fundraiser. The money has now been transferred in full to Mrs. Runwal.

“It’s a very difficult situation for her, knowing what to do. She’s going back to India to be with her family because it’s going to take months and months for her to come to terms with this tragedy.”

Mr Ahmed said the family were deeply concerned that unscrupulous internet scammers would exploit the tragedy, and made it clear that the GoFundMe page was the only one they had given permission for.

The Runwals were on a family outing and had just arrived at the platform when the twin daughters’ stroller was rolled onto the train tracks.

Mr Runwal heroically jumped onto the tracks to lift their pram back onto the platform when he and Hinal were killed by the passing train.

NSW Police Chief Paul Dunstan said police were investigating what caused the pram to roll and it could have been something simple such as a “gust of wind”.

New South Wales Police Commissioner Paul Dunstan said the parents appeared to have taken their hands off the pram for a “very short period” as it rolled towards the tracks.

According to Chief Dunstan, an investigation is underway to determine what caused the stroller to roll. It could be something as simple as a “gust of wind.”

The Runwals, who had been together for 14 years, had become beloved members of the local Kogarah community since moving to Sydney’s south in October.

Other family members, including Ms Runwal’s sister and brother-in-law, flew to Australia from India this week to support the widow, who has now given up on her family’s dream of building a new life in Australia.

Ms Runwal will reportedly return to Bangalore, India, after the funerals of her husband and daughter, so she can be close to her family as she tries to rebuild her life.

“This is such a tragedy and there are so many sad memories for Poonam now, she will not be able to come back,” a family friend said.

It is understood that after the funerals of her husband and daughter, Mrs Runwal will return to Bangalore, India, to be close to her family as she attempts to rebuild her life.

Emergency services and police inspect the scene of the train crash in southern Sydney

The family moved to Sydney from India in October 2023 after Mr Runwal found a job with an IT company in North Sydney. Ms Runwal and the girls were listed as dependents on his skilled worker visa.

His visa was due to expire next week and he was in the process of getting it extended. His wife’s visa was dependent on his permission to remain in Australia and there were fears she would be deported.

Shortly after the tragedy, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese supported calls for the family to remain in Australia and urged his Home Affairs Minister to treat Ms Runwal with generosity and compassion.

“It is of course a ministerial decision, but I believe these matters should be treated with the compassion that Australians have a right to expect from us,” Albanese said.

“This mother has had to watch her husband and one of her twin children tragically die. I would have thought that we are a generous country and that the hearts of Australians would go out to this woman and her young child.”

New South Wales Premier Chris Minns, who lives less than 100 metres from the station, said the father died in an “extraordinary, instinctive act of bravery”.

“He gave his own life to save his children,” he said.