Hi Dear Folk,
Are you ready to hear another train journey story? Friday my boss let me out an hour early from work, I was able to catch the 4:29 PM train. Second stop on the way home is Temple for Temple University, this is quite a modern station for the University. So an upscale area encapsulated in a very run down poor area. The next two stops are Broad Street and Allegheny, both in run down bad areas of Philly. In fact only every other train stops at these two stations as only one or two people get on or off or even at all.
We stop at Broad Street and wait and wait and the next thing we know we are told that there is a medical emergency and an ambulance has been called. The carriage where this happened has now been evacuated to our carriage and people are piling in. When we find out that a guy got on the train with his hand stuffed into s Subway bag and stuffed into his jacket, from which blood is gushing out and onto the floor.
I think SEPTA were just going to carry on and clean up the carriage later, but the police said no this is a crime scene and everyone has to be evacuated off the train. So we wait for the next train to come, we have to get off the train on the wrong side, literally climb down the steps and jump. Even when I was on the bottom step I was above the head of the conductor standing on the ground, he helped me to jump down between the trains. I had to walk between the two trains past several carriages in a gully, on these big gravel stones, not the easiest to walk on. The wheels of the trains are almost as tall as me, another conductor helped me along, I wasn't going to say no after having fractured my ankle last year. Next was to climb up into the other train, now this step is as high as the top of my leg, so I said to the conductor "Theres no way I can step up there" I knelt and then pulled myself up. I walked along to the back of the train to make room for others still getting on. A nice young girl gave her seat up for me, I was pretty puffed by then.
Never a dull moment.
Christine
Are you ready to hear another train journey story? Friday my boss let me out an hour early from work, I was able to catch the 4:29 PM train. Second stop on the way home is Temple for Temple University, this is quite a modern station for the University. So an upscale area encapsulated in a very run down poor area. The next two stops are Broad Street and Allegheny, both in run down bad areas of Philly. In fact only every other train stops at these two stations as only one or two people get on or off or even at all.
We stop at Broad Street and wait and wait and the next thing we know we are told that there is a medical emergency and an ambulance has been called. The carriage where this happened has now been evacuated to our carriage and people are piling in. When we find out that a guy got on the train with his hand stuffed into s Subway bag and stuffed into his jacket, from which blood is gushing out and onto the floor.
I think SEPTA were just going to carry on and clean up the carriage later, but the police said no this is a crime scene and everyone has to be evacuated off the train. So we wait for the next train to come, we have to get off the train on the wrong side, literally climb down the steps and jump. Even when I was on the bottom step I was above the head of the conductor standing on the ground, he helped me to jump down between the trains. I had to walk between the two trains past several carriages in a gully, on these big gravel stones, not the easiest to walk on. The wheels of the trains are almost as tall as me, another conductor helped me along, I wasn't going to say no after having fractured my ankle last year. Next was to climb up into the other train, now this step is as high as the top of my leg, so I said to the conductor "Theres no way I can step up there" I knelt and then pulled myself up. I walked along to the back of the train to make room for others still getting on. A nice young girl gave her seat up for me, I was pretty puffed by then.
Never a dull moment.
Christine
Whew yet another train story! I think I would have been stranded between trains out there on the gravel somewhere. Sounds like an obstacle course. You'll be really glad to be rid of trains on a daily basis!!
ReplyDeleteSo much for getting home early. Glad you managed not to fall and break something else. Be glad you aren't in India. It is common for people to be hit by trains there as they walk on the tracks. It is the driver's job to retrieve the body after he hit it and take it to the next station. My friend was in the train and the body was put on the floor of her carriage and they sat with it until the next station. No niceties there!
ReplyDeleteYikes! Glad you are ok.
ReplyDelete