Angry Idiot + Train = Wishful Taking a Cab Home

[WishfulSpirit]

Disclaimer 1: I would NOT be posting this if said Angry Idiot (AI) had been killed. No matter how stupid someone is, there's someone else out there that loves him, and nobody should ever have to deal with the untimely death of a loved one.

Disclaimer 2: I don't know how AI is doing, and I hope he makes a full recovery.

/end disclaimers

Ok so it's Saturday night. I got off work at 11pm, got the 11:40 bus to the train station. When the bus arrived, I see flashing red and blue lights, which turn out to be coming from multiple police cars. Uh-oh. Bus driver informs his passengers that the light rail station is closed due an accident.

I pull out my phone, set Gmaps to Transit > Bus Only and find out the next bus headed in the direction of home doesn't come for 30 minutes, and then I have to transfer at an area I'm not familiar with. At 1am. By myself. While female. While also being able to get lost in an empty room. Yeah, not happening tonight. Hello taxi company? I'm at <Light Rail Station>, come save my butt.

Turns out some Angry Idiot was having an argument with another passenger. Said passenger boarded the train before he did, the doors closed. AI went to go pound on the window while STANDING ON THE TRACKS, the train started to move, and AI's pants got caught, pulling his leg under the train.

As far as I know (peicing the story together later by talking to the friendly transit security guys who frequent my route), his injuries were not life-threatening, but DANG DUDE. Trains are DANGEROUS. I assume alcohol was involved in your steller decision-making.

I also wonder if the reason his pants were able to get caught was that he wasn't, ahem, wearing the waistband where it belonged. So if you're going to do the sag look, guys, stay off train tracks, K?

[RealUnimportant]

That's two lucky people, assuming the light rail isn't fully automated. Being drunk probably helped a little too, as it tends to prevent reactions that might otherwise result in worse injuries.

[Seshat]

Drivers get traumatised when they 'cause' injuries. Even if they know intellectually that the real cause was the injured person being an idiot; or even a third party being an idiot.
Most good peoples' minds (not all, thankfully) wind up with a running loop of 'There has to be something I could have done to prevent it'.

Psychologists and other therapists earn their pay teaching these people how to get off that .. ahem .. track (sorry); while still being good people.


Relating back to the original post: I am pleased for the driver's sake that the injury was not a death. I am saddened for the driver's sake that there was any injury at all.

[MoonCat]

That's two lucky people, assuming the light rail isn't fully automated. Being drunk probably helped a little too, as it tends to prevent reactions that might otherwise result in worse injuries.

Being drunk also means one's reactions aren't as fast as they should be, not to mention being the foremost reason for poor judgement in the first place, so...yeah, don't drink and get too close to trains.

[cindybubbles]

That guy's lucky that he didn't stand on the subway tracks!

That third rail would have been the end of him.