CHENNAI: As the Gummidipoondi-Chennai Central local train touched base at 8.45pm on September 3, people jumped out. Many were going home, some others had to catch connecting buses and trains. Six commuters came out of Central station, paused for a few minutes, and were greeted by the warm earthy smell that emanates minutes after a downpour. All of them reached home that night. They probably would not have.

In those few minutes that these six men had paused, a few metres away, an Indian mongrel barked, then jumped into a puddle of water and became lifeless. Seconds later, the commuters realised that the pool of water in which they were about to step had a live wire snapped from an electrical line.

The dog had barked to warn them not to step forward. When it saw that the commuters paid no heed, it took its final leap. Death came instantly, but commuters were stunned by what they saw as an act of supreme sacrifice.

The dog that died left behind a litter of 10-day-old pups. Residents of the area adopted all of them, but, probably because of the mother’s absence, two died. “On Wednesday night, a broken high voltage wire fell in a pool of collected rainwater inside the railway premises. The frantic dog kept barking but people shooed it away. It dashed ahead, jumped in the water, and gave up its life,” said Dawn Williams, general manager, Blue Cross.

People informed Railway Protection Force inspector N Alagar Swamy, who cordoned off the area. “When RPF personnel reached the spot, they found a litter of puppies. We rescued them and gave them to Blue Cross,” said Swamy. As the news about the dog’s death spread, Blue Cross volunteers received a huge response for adopting the pups. “Long after they were adopted, we continue to receive calls,” Williams said.

Two of the pups died shortly after being adopted. The rest of the pups are well. “We had two dogs earlier. Both died recently. When we went to the Blue Cross to adopt a dog, people told us about the pup’s mother who had saved human lives. We immediately adopted them,” said Pradeepa, who adopted two dogs.

