A family shattered by tragedy had strived for years to have children before the father and one of his toddler twin daughters were horrifically killed by a train on Sunday.
Anand Runwal, 40, and his wife Poonam, 39, were on a family outing with their twin daughters when the girls’ pram rolled onto train tracks at Carlton Station, in Sydney‘s south, about 12.25pm.
Mr Runwal heroically leapt down from the platform in a brave attempt to save his daughters but a passing train struck and killed both the father and one of the little girls, Hinal. Her sister Hiya escaped virtually unscathed.
Former neighbour Benzin told Daily Mail Australia the couple, who had been together for 14 years, had struggled to build their family before they welcomed their two miracle babies.
He described Hinal and Hiya as ‘happy, gentle, little girls’.
‘I believe they were trying to have kids for about 10 years, they were married a long time and were a happy family,’ he said.
‘The twins were always in matching outfits.
‘They loved coming over and playing with our son – he is four and the girls are two so we would give them a lot of his old toys.’
Anand, 40, and Poonam Runwal, 39, had been together for 14 years
Benzin described the family as ‘very friendly’ and said Ms Runwal was a great cook, with the children often spending time at each other’s homes.
Breaking down into tears, Benzin said it had been difficult to explain to his son what had happened.
‘He keeps asking to see the girls. He is only four – it is too hard for him to understand so we have told him they moved back to India,’ he said.
‘When we heard the news yesterday, I checked WhatsApp and saw Anand hadn’t checked WhatsApp since 11.30am.
‘And then we went past their place to see if they were home. When we knocked on the door and there was no answer, we knew it wasn’t good news.’
In February, Ms Runwal, originally from Rajasthan, and Mr Runwal, who grew up in Bangalore, celebrated their 14th anniversary.
Sharing a photo of the couple at Camp Cove Beach at Watsons Bay in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, Ms Runwal wrote: ‘Happy Anniversary my everything.’
Other posts online reveal the family had been making the most of their time in Australia, frequently hiring cars and drivers for weekends out of Sydney, including to Kiama on the south coast and the Hunter Valley.
Hinal (left) and Hiya (right) Runwal
Friends of the family have revealed they spent almost a decade trying to have kids before welcoming their miracle twins
The revelation comes after Daily Mail Australia revealed Ms Runwal and Hiya could face deportation in coming days in the wake of the tragedy.
The family moved to Sydney from India in October 2023 after Mr Runwal secured a job at an IT firm in North Sydney, with Ms Runwal and the girls listed as dependants on his skilled workers visa.
The visa was due to expire on August 1 and Mr Runwal was in the process of having it renewed.
Mr Runwal sought advice on Facebook five weeks ago about the process for applying for fast-tracked passports for both he and his wife, as they were needed to apply for the new visa.
‘My visa is going to expire on Aug 1 2024, whereas my passport has [an] expiry date of February 2025,’ he wrote.
‘As per my employer, I need to have at least 12 months expiry date from today on my passport to extend my visa.’
As Ms Runwal’s visa is reliant on her husband’s working visa, her right to stay in Australia is now at risk as she grapples with the heartbreaking tragedy.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted the Department of Home Affairs for comment who are investigating the case.
The family had just arrived on the platform, after taking a lift down from the station, when the pram rolled onto the tracks.
Witnesses said Mr Runwal heroically leapt into action and jumped down onto the tracks in a desperate bid to save his daughters. He was attempting to lift the pram back onto the platform when he was struck.
The twins’ father heroically jumped onto the tracks to try and save his daughters but was struck by a train passing through, killing him and one of the little girls
Lauren Langelaar was working across the road when the tragedy unfolded. She ran to the platform after hearing the mother’s screams for help.
‘I ran out to help the mother because I could just hear her screaming while looking down onto the tracks,’ Ms Langelaar told Daily Mail Australia.
‘It all happened very quickly. I was down on the platform helping the mother try and scream out to her children and husband under the train.’
Ms Langelaar said a Sydney Trains worker, who was on the platform, called emergency services and explained they could ‘only hear one child crying’.
When police arrived, they told Ms Langelaar to hold the mother back while officers jumped onto the tracks.
‘As I sat [Ms Runwal] down, the little girl got pulled out of under the train with hardly a scratch on her, she was just crying,’ Ms Langelaar said.
She said Mr Runwal ‘begged’ paramedics to hand over her little girl so that she could hold her but was initially denied as they assessed the toddler’s injuries.
‘She refused at first for paramedics to check her out, she just wanted to hold her,’ Ms Langelaar said.
One woman, Lauren Langelaar, ran to the platform after hearing the mother’s screams and had to restrain her as emergency services looked for her husband and children
Floral tributes were placed at Carlton Railway Station for the hero dad and his little girl who were killed by the train
‘Then she continued to yell out, “Where is my husband and other child?”.’
Ms Langelaar said paramedics continued to assess the little girl while she was in her mother’s arms as she ‘didn’t seem to be hurt’ and only had a ‘slight bump on the back of her head’.
The surviving toddler was taken to St George Hospital with her mother where they were assessed by doctors before being released.
NSW Police Superintendent Paul Dunstan said the parents appeared to have taken their hands off the pram for a ‘very short period of time’ before it rolled towards the tracks.
Mr Dunstan said police were investigating what caused the pram to roll and said it could have been something as simple as a ‘gust of wind’.
NSW premier Chris Minns, who lives within 100m of the station, said the father died while performing an ‘extraordinary, instinctual act of bravery’.
‘He gave his own life to try and save his children,’ he said.