BERLIN (AP) -- German police say a train struck and killed a woman trying to rescue her blind dog after it fell onto the tracks.

The 62-year-old woman was hit by a train at a station near the southwestern town of Ludwigshafen on Monday while trying to save the animal. She suffered serious head injuries and died at the scene.

Police say her 12-year-old granddaughter and the girl's friend of the same age witnessed the accident and are being treated for shock. The dog was rescued unharmed. It was not immediately clear how it managed to avoid the train.

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