-
Victoria Road
Fatality at station
Photo credit:
Surreykraut Train chaos after woman hit by train.
Trains through the station faced delays after a woman was killed when she was hit by a train today. South West Trains said lines in to and out of Waterloo Station in London were blocked for up to an hour after the incident.
British Transport Police said a woman climbed down from the platform at Surbiton station in Surrey and was crossing the track when she was hit by a Salisbury-Waterloo service this afternoon.
A spokesman for British Transport Police said, "Station staff saw what was happening and tried to stop her but it happened very quickly. The train was travelling at 80mph.
The incident is not being treated as suspicious.
Read more:
Press Association By posting content on Surbiton.com, you agree to adhere to the following guidelines.
- Your username and password must only be used by you, keep them safe. If a posting is made using your username and password it will be considered to have been posted by you. If you have a friend who wants to use our site and post messages on the site, show them how to register.
- Be courteous at all times, inciting racial hatred, posting abusive, obscene, threatening, harassing, defamatory, libellous or sexually explicit material or any material that is found to be offensive is not acceptable and we may suspend your username and password.
- Retaliating to offensive posts causes more problems for other users on the discussion boards. Just report such messages to us using the Feedback link which is available at the top of every page or the 'report this' link associated with individual postings. We will act on every report we receive.
- Please respect other people's work and do not post material that infringes copyright.
- Do not post information that you know to be confidential or sensitive or otherwise in breach of the law. You should only post material that you know to be public knowledge. If you have any doubts do not post it on the site.
- Never attempt to gain unauthorised access to any area of the site. This is known as hacking and is illegal.
- Content posted represents the opinions of the author, and does not represent the opinions of Surbiton.com or its affiliates and has not been approved or issued by Surbiton.com. You should be aware that the other participants are strangers to you and may make statements which may be misleading, deceptive or wrong.
- Spoofing or posing as another user is unacceptable. Anonymous users' postings should always be considered with suspicion.
- Help keep Surbiton.com a safe place for information and opinion. Please alert us of any anti-social behaviour as described above.
Surbiton.com 1998 - 2024
Comments
What on earth is up with the religious nuts here? What does religion have to do with ANYTHING, pray tell? Someone's died and that's tragic. Stop forcing your stupid religious views about the place.
May her soul rest in peace. I knew this woman personally and regardless of her problems she was a very kind and caring human being. It was not suicide.
Does the person who wrote in suggesting this girl was in a YMCA know her, or are you just so incredibally ignorant and bored you felt the need to write in and give us their dollar's worth? Well hey, eye witness here, for you, ignorance is a bliss. As an ex YMCAIAN myself you obviously have no concept whatsoever of how much it actually costs to live in one, and yes, believe it or not I do work. I have an honest full-time career and paying to live in a YMCA sucked most of my wages from my pocket. I would also like to point out that I met a huge amount of people whilst living there who not only weren't down-and-out but hey, were normal everyday FUN people. I also have friends now who have in one way or another seen the ugly side of life but have come out the other end. You have never obviously known a person who for whatever reason, has experienced that way of life. It's also pretty obvious to me that you have never witnessed a fatality such as the tragedy that occurred at Surbiton station that afternoon. Well I feel very sorry for you my friend because the day you do, you will never be the same again I can assure you of that. I was unlucky enough to have witnessed the whole event and it is something I will never get over. However, I'll continue to pray for you.
I agree with that last statement %100. How was she able to negotiate the rails whilst being so apparently inebriated? Well, it is possible. I know through my own past experience a person is able to drink so much they loose all memory of the now, yet still come out of it safely at the end. That's why I suggested maybe it was drug induced also. She appeared to have no concept of where she was or what she was doing. I hope she didn't. Please God, I really hope she didn't. Rest in Peace.
Well thats ONE LESS IN THE YMCA !
Dutch courage = being brave or foolish after a large intake of alcohol so if she was drunk she could have done what she did because of the drink/drugs which she would not normally have done. Its funny though that she manage to negotiate her way through the live rails when apparently so inebriated she was out of it.
MSJMR, Like always you miss the point of the discussion.
How do you know she had large intake of alcohol and was 'negotiating' her way through the live rails?
Try and keep up old bean!
[quote=Anonymous]MSJMR, Like always you miss the point of the discussion.
How do you know she had large intake of alcohol and was 'negotiating' her way through the live rails?
Try and keep up old bean!
[/quote]
Because old bean, an eywitness on this forum has described what happenned. Try learing to read properly.
MSJMR, that was an eywitness, not you! try to keep up 'old chap'
[quote=Anonymous]MSJMR, that was an eywitness, not you! try to keep up 'old chap'
[/quote]
So clever arent you NOT Mranonymouswhoistoscaredtohavearusername. its so frustrating having to post on here whent the "planks" are around.
I thought the kiddies had gone back to school !
The above text has been deliberately disemvowelled as it is in breach of the Surbiton.com terms.
The above text has been deliberately disemvowelled as it is in breach of the Surbiton.com terms.
My point is, I just don't know. I did see this girl jump down on to the track run across to the other side and try and climb up, but what really was going on inside her head is something only she knows the answer to. Maybe it was drug and alcohol induced maybe it wasn't but I saw everything and it is not something I want to ever witness again. So please people, whatever kind of person she was, whatever you all think, please remember, a human life was abruptly and horrifically cut short that day as a result. REST IN PEACE CHRISTINE JOHNSON. MAY THE LORD BE WITH YOU. GOD BLESS.
This has nothing to do with laziness, dutch courage or anything else. I watched what happened from start to finish and this is to do with what appeared to be a complete tragedy. The girl, who seemed very drunk and high on drugs, came off the train on platform 4, jumped on to the track from platform 3, ran across to platform 2, AVOIDING the live rails, then tried to climb up on to the platform. If this was someone suicidal, then why on earth was she trying to get up on to platform 2?! Why on earth did she avoid the live rails, it doesn't make sense!! She appeared to look through the train coming towards her, intent on climbing on to the platform. It appeared she didn't know what she was doing. Does anybody know her? Rest in peace.
So what's your point?
I think that the point being made is that this woman killed herself in an act of drunken stupidity, rather than deliberate suicide as a lot of people have assumed.
If alcohol/drugs effect you in such an extreme way, however, just going out and getting drunk could be seen as tantamount to suicide anyway.
It does appear that she was probably drunk and that Dutch courage made her jump down on the track and she was killed.
You haven’t cleared anything up, we are ‘still none the wiser’
Right, from reading all these comments I would just like to clear a few things.
My friend was at the station at the time but luckily didn't see anything happened. But soon asked around and was told that the girl may have been very drunk and was too lazy to walk over the platforms (apparently this was said out loud) but instead thought it would be 'clever' to walk right through them.
This is a selfish act, regardless if its suicide. If she may have been drunk, then what a shame she had to end her life this way out of stupidness, and put so many horrible memories on the witnesses.
My thoughts are with her family and friends.
So sad. My thoughts and prayers are with the victim's family and all those affected by this tragedy. RIP
Yes the driver should not blame herself there was nothing she could do. Very sad indeed.
I am just wondering why on earth she performed such rash act. She must have known that jumping down on the track was extremely dangerous. The track is also a long way down from the platform so how on earth was she expecting to haul herself up, there would be nothing for her to grip or step on to.
From all accounts it would appear that this women may well have been intoxicated.(please note may of been).Such a tragic loss.I believe there are around 300 fatalities on the railways in this country every year - it is a very dangerous place! Don't really think it matters but i believe the train driver was female,no amount of training can help you in this situation, but if you do read this,have a few weeks off and really hope you get yourself in the drivers cab again soon.
^100% agree with the last two posts
Well, there was clearly something very wrong. No one of sound mind would climb down onto a mainline railway track to catch another train, retrieve a dropped item, or anything else.
The moment she stepped off of the platform, she must have realised that there was only going to be one outcome.
I do not believe this was a suicide. I believe this was an accident. I was on the platform at the moment this tragedy struck and the woman seemed to be trying to climb up onto the opposite platform. Unfortuately she was caught as a fast train went through. These trains are so close to the platforms they're almost touching them. She didn't stand a chance, neither did the train of stopping. Very very very tragic. R.I.P God bless. . . .
The above text has been deliberately disemvowelled as it is in breach of the Surbiton.com terms.
I feel that the people who are condoning the woman as "selfish" and disruptive should take a minute to realise that none of us know all the facts - whether this was suicide or not- and therefore, should not pass judgement so quickly. In any case, it's very selfish to insult this woman because you were delayed by a few hours, such a petty thing compared to the loss of a human life! What a tragic event, my condolences to the friends and family of the woman and to the people who experienced the event. To the people who were a bit late getting home from work, get over it.
Was she really trying to cross the rails to catch another train, if that is the case then she was incredibly stupid or out of her mind on drugs or drink. I usually find that suicides in Surbiton station usually occur in winter and v early in the morning. THis is the only one I know of to happen later in the day in the summer. Its not a very nice way to do away with oneself and although I am sorry if she felt so low that life wasn't worth living I also feel very sorry for the driver, other passengers who witnessed the scene and her family.
Assuming the woman was trying to catch a train on another platform, if she is stupid enough to walk across 4 railway lines with live rails carrying very high voltages then it's clear that Darwin's theory of natural selection is true. Also, to climb down from a platform onto a railway without first checking to see if there is a train coming if stupidity of the highest order.
If it was suicide then what a totally selfish act. Traumatising the driver and people present, and wreaking havoc on hundreds of thousands of people across the SWT network trying to get home. SWT should have bottles of paracetomol freely available for idiots who want to commit suicide. Or automatic doors that don't let imbeciles near the track.
And why did SWT need to shut down the whole system? Trains everywhere were cancelled.. is there any need or is it a case of small man syndrome trying to assert his authority by affecting all these people?
This is always the case with SWT - one incident at one station and the whole network goes down. Fair enough, Surbiton is a mainline station, but why should a fatality there cause more than a short delay for people going to places on completely different lines like Egham and Staines.
The police should also work faster in situations like this. I appreciate that it is important to find out what happened, and who was at fault. A life has been lost, but hours of chinstroking while keeping the line closed is not going to change this, it simply compounds the problem by delaying thousands of people and costing millions of pounds in lost productivity.
It is painful even to think what mental state someone has to be in to throw themselves in front of a train, but I have to agree with most here that it is a very selfish act.
I was on this train that killed this woman with my children and it was not a nice experence.
She has not only lost her own life,but she has ruined many others.
The train driver,the witnesses, and the people on the train,and not forgetting the family she has left behind.
He that is without sin among you, let him cast the first stone at her.
[The people crowded around him were so touched by their own consciences that they departed]
^this was me btw. Forgot to log in.
‘Spanner thingies’ Prey for forgiveness my son for your words bring fortitude in the eyes of God, only forsaken in earnest of his grace, a disciple of our Lord
Praise the lord
lol @ the comedy bible nut! This site has everything. It's the site that keeps on giving! Amazing.
The Lord waits for those who are interested to come and learn of him, those whose hearts desire is to draw nigh to Him
Praise the Lord
The above text has been deliberately disemvowelled as it is in breach of the Surbiton.com terms.
Regardless of how it happened, it happened, weather by illegally crossing the line or suicide the train drivers career is now over as will it effect the life’s of onlookers (especially children), so don’t Condon this women’s actions regardless of the intend!
Furthermore, stop ‘bible bashing’ to appease her actions, her soul will be confined to purgatory for her dead
The intent was not to bible bash, that is definately not where I am coming from, however how you wish to dissect the comment is your call. I was simply attempting to make you realise that maybe, just occasionally, there may be other factors. This is a life we are talking about, and I hope it never happens to you or yours and if it does, that some individual does not feel it is appropriate to inform without being informed.
As for Purgatory, no idea, the lady is dead, yip a positive on that one, was it meant to cause this distress, probably not, but hey, I do not have the luxury of always being right, I leave that to others, for me it is just a matter of being human. Anyway, have a nice day, and when it does happen to you and inevitably it will, I hope those around you are far more sympathetic, that is accepting that there are those around you who genuinely care, whether they know you or not.
This sort of behaviour is unaccepatble.
I believe suicide is a selfish act anyway, but to do so in this way is even more selfish. It caused absolute havoc, and that train driver will be forever scarred by this incident. If this woman was crossing the tracks to catch another train, I can only wonder what carelessness and ignorance could lead this woman to make such a silly, dangerous decision. However, it is pretty clear that this was suicide.
For one reader to suggest "it was clear this was a suicide" - for me, a member of staff of Surbiton station who not only was on shift at the time but witnessed the entire tragic incident first-hand, I beg to differ. Not only was this woman extremely inebriated, she also appeared to be completely oblivious to her surroundings. Please note I stress, "appeared". Maybe she was, maybe she wasn't. For what ever reason it was that possessed her to run across the track, has yet to be determined. I think it's totally wrong and unfair of people to speculate on something they not only didn't witness but do not hold the full facts on. I do not believe a person is deliberately being selfish. I believe for someone to even get that low, to even think suicide, then something is terribly wrong. However, I do feel dreadfully sorry for the driver. Due to the speed of which this train was travelling, there was absolutely no way it could be stopped in time. I can't possibly imagine how they are feeling right now but devasted is probably an understatement.
My thoughts are with both the driver and of the woman's loved ones. Sorry.
Before making irrational comments, maybe there is more to this than meets the eye and just maybe, for whatever reason it was simply a silly mistake based on health or misjudgement and not as you so righteously suggest, was suicide.
I am sure the lady who was killed did not mean in any manner to traumatise the driver nor in fact neither the passengers nor spectators who witnessed the incident. I am also certain the last thing that she meant to do was cause some really 'important' individual who considers their life to be worth more than hers, to either run late or miss their connections allowing them to get on with their busy lives. Someone has died here, it is sad that we cannot take a second of our lives to appreciate this instead of allowing ourselves to make comments that verge on self importance and a definite lack of understanding and information.
Sometimes when a candle is extinguished, the light in more than one place goes out and it is truly fortunate that this particular loss has not happened to you personally. We all appreciate that silly mistakes cost lives, but some thoughtless statements have a tendency to show the mark of the individual who made them…
Without utilising a direct quote, I think the good books says, let those without sin cast the first stone...therefore on behalf of her family, I am sure they will wish that you have a good, long and prosperous life.
Agree with the poster above. thoughts go with the womans family but so many other people are affected by this. i was stuck at waterloo and speaking to a guard he told me that its becoming more and more regular. I suppose they see it as guarenteed way of going but i cant for the life of me think what its like for a train driver to go through that.
Oh so thats what happened...had to go in and out of waterloo today. Good god, when passing through surbiton i thought i saw one of those black bags where they put the dead bodies in.
Rest In Peace. What a horrible way to die. Was caught in all the delays and my thoughts are with her family and friends at this tragic time!
Papers today, read about a 'millionaire' suicide guy who tied a rope around a tree then climbs into his Porsche, ties the rope around his neck, and in front of the local community, drops into gear and revs off.
Erm, the mind boggles
It's not clear that it was suicide although I cannot believe someone would just be 'crossing the tracks'.
Whilst I am sympathetic to whatever reasons drove her to do this and my thought are with her family, it wa a totally selfish act. Not only would the driver of the train and the passengers and anyone on the platform be traumatised but it was complete chaos at Waterloo tonight.
Before criticising this woman, you might try finding out the actual facts. I was at Surbiton yesterday and staff told me she tried to run across the tracks to catch another train on a different platform.
Post new comment