In another message to parents, Drumm advised that support is available for students.
He said the school has spoken to Year 9 and Year 10 students directly to “ensure they were informed and also aware of how to access support, as they came to terms with this news”.
“It is appreciated that when something like this happens it can be confronting and confusing, and the impact on each of us can be unpredictable and varied, and may not always be immediate.”
There was a sombre mood at the Baldwin Ave Train Station earlier this morning as commuters walked with heads down waiting for their trains following the tragic death on the tracks.
A group of students walked past the crossing, one girl in tears while friends consoled her.
Two pupils, one primary school and one secondary school-aged, placed the flowers before leaving with their mothers. Another woman placed a bouquet against the metal railing before driving off.
Students from multiple schools could be seen with sad expressions on their faces with many talking in whispers after the incident which has rocked the central Auckland community.
Flowers are left near the scene where a person died yesterday afternoon at Baldwin Ave Train Station, Mt Albert. Photo / Jason Dorday
Three Mt Albert Grammar School staff were this morning on the platform as students arrived off trains to go to the nearby college.
Auckland commuters were advised to check before travelling this morning following the fatal incident.
Auckland Transport (AT) warned passengers to check for cancellations on the Western Line; however, most trains are now running as normal, a spokesman told the Herald this morning.
The incident was reported at 3.28pm at Baldwin Ave station.
Hato Hone St John told the Herald it responded with an ambulance and rapid response unit.
A tarpaulin was attached to the side of the train, which was stopped on the line.
A Mt Albert Grammar staff member at the station to meet students where a pedestrian was hit by a train yesterday. Photo / Jason Dorday
Mount Albert Grammar School (MAGS) students were in the surrounding area, while headmaster Patrick Drumm was behind the police cordon.
Outside the train station, MAGS staff members were chaperoning students home.
Emergency services attend an incident at the Baldwin Ave train station. Photo / Corey Fleming
Poppy Curnow Booker, who was on board during the incident, told Stuff the train driver slammed on the brakes and it derailed when the driver saw a student.
She said a student had been struck.
Another passenger on the train told the Herald they felt a double jolt after leaving the station and suddenly the train stopped.
Passengers said police told them only that there had been an incident.
A police officer at the cordon told RNZ a young boy had been struck by the train.
A tarpaulin was attached to the side of the train as emergency services dealt with the incident.
AT said there were delays and cancellations on the Western Line after the incident.
Albert-Eden-Puketāpapa Ward councillor Julie Fairey advised locals on Facebook to stay away from the scene.
“There has been a transport incident, and more people coming into the area is unhelpful at the moment – the police and security are there, and traffic management is coming for Rossgrove Tce,” Fairey wrote.
She said the station and the level crossing would be closed for hours to come.
“Thinking of all of those involved.”
Mt Albert MP Helen White said she was “so saddened to see the death of a young person” in her community.
“I just want to share my condolences with his whānau. I appreciate the nightmare this will be for them,” she wrote on Facebook.
There were delays and cancellations on the Western Line after the incident at Baldwin Ave train station.
Albert-Eden local board member Kendyl Smith sent her thoughts to the “family and friends of the young person involved in the tragic incident at Baldwin Ave Station today”.
“This will be an incredibly difficult time for them,” Smith wrote on Facebook.
“My heart also goes out to the MAGS students and staff, and the wider MAGS community who may have been affected or witnessed what happened.
“Thinking too of the train driver, passengers and first responders who were involved and may be deeply affected by what they experienced.
“I hope the community can come together to support one another through this difficult time.”
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