A MAN who had to be airlifted to hospital after falling onto a railway line was believed to have "lost his balance".

Paramedics and officers from British Transport Police responded to Sunday morning's incident, which happened on the line near Pokesdown railway station.

A man fell onto the tracks from the railway bridge on Ashley Road in Boscombe.

An eyewitness said they saw him being carried by a stretcher from the railway line. 

He was treated by paramedics before being airlifted to hospital.

He suffered a broken ankle and spinal injuries, a British Transport Police spokesperson confirmed on Monday.

It was reported to police that the man had "lost his balance" before falling onto the tracks.

The railway line was closed between Bournemouth and Brockenhurst while emergency services dealt with the incident.

Disruption lasted until around 2pm. 

A South Western Ambulance Service spokesperson said: "We were called at 8.25am to Boscombe when it was reported a man had fallen onto the tracks.

"We responded with several vehicles, ambulance teams treated the male patient and he was taken onto hospital by air ambulance."

A South Western Railway spokesperson said: "The line between Bournemouth and Brockenhurst was closed due to emergency services responding to an incident. 

"The line is now open, however some services are still disrupted. 

"We apologise to our passengers for the disruption to their journey and would encourage anyone delayed by 15 minutes or more to see our website for details of our Delay Repay scheme."