Tragedy as person dies on railway tracks

A person was found dead after emergency services were called to reports of a casualty on railway tracks near a station, British Transport Police have revealed.

The tragedy happened at Lostock railway station, near Bolton, at around 3.14pm on Thursday, BTP confirmed in a statement.

The person was pronounced dead at the scene, although their death is not being treated as suspicious, a spokesman added.

Try MEN Premium for FREE by clicking here for no ads, fun puzzles and brilliant new features.

As reported in the Manchester Evening News, all train lines remain closed this evening between Bolton and Preston railway stations as emergency services deal with the tragedy. Northern said train services running through the stations would be cancelled or delayed by 60 minutes

All stations between Preston and Salford Crescent stations, reported the train operator, would not be served, with disruption expected until at least 5.30pm.

Northern routes affected include services between Manchester Airport and Blackpool North and between Barrow-in-Furness and Windermere.

TransPennine Express trains between Manchester Airport and Carlisle, Glasgow Central and Edinburgh are also expected to be affected. National Rail said: "The emergency services are dealing with an incident between Bolton and Preston. To allow them to safely carry out their work, all lines are closed.

"As a result, trains running to and from these stations may be cancelled, delayed by up to 60 minutes or revised. This is expected until 530pm."

A number of trains have already been cancelled - all stations between Preston and Salford Crescent won't be served.

National Rail added: "Replacement road transport has been requested. More details will be provided here once