An Event That Transformed Me: My Train Was in an Accident – and subsequently There Was a Child Weeping.
That instant it dawned on me my life was in danger occurred in my 20s, at a time when everything was beginning. My best friend, Helen, and I were traveling to Blackburn to catch up with a former classmate who had made a new home there for work. Delighted to be together, and enjoying the thought of the upcoming weekend of fun, we talked incessantly as we traveled by train from York.
We placed our luggage – full of essentials such as wine bottles and the clogs I had just bought – above our heads and got seated in a cosy two-seater. Roughly halfway through our journey, I was faintly cognizant of a bang. Another one sounded, which could not be dismissed. Someone cried out as our carriage was lifted off the tracks in what felt like a dreamlike pace. In an instant, Helen and I were standing up in the middle of the aisle, holding each other tight. Head down, vision blocked, I anticipated the carriage to roll over and burst into flames, similar to cinematic scenes. I recall pondering our families and friends receiving the notification. That's when the sound of the child sobbing.
“It's going to be fine,” I said softly, my voice sounding croaky. “The worst has passed,” I whispered, mostly for my own benefit.
She appeared to be seven or eight, and looked like she had no guardian. Her crying shook me out of my trance; here was my chance to help. I made my way to where she was standing and put my arm around her. “Avoid looking back,” Helen yelled, but it was already too late. I glimpsed a man with his face covered in blood. An enormous piece of metal had penetrated the window behind us. Afterward, we found out a uncontrolled excavator had rolled down the hill and smashed into our carriage, leading to the derailment.
Our compartment was trapped with its front end in the air. Following that came of sirens and another traveler instructed me to pass the little girl to him so he could pass her through the window, while young passengers were extracted to fire crews on standby. A few minutes later, Helen and I were similarly exiting of the train window and climbing down a ladder down to the rails.
Once back on solid ground – next to a goods shed in Pudsey – uncontrollable shivers took over. I searched for the little girl and watched her mother gather her up, as it transpired had been in the toilet at the time of the accident. An emergency worker helpfully fetched my clogs. A fellow passenger collapsed on Helen’s case, making it split apart – but, by good fortune our wine stayed unbroken. Once we had waited for thirty minutes, we traveled in a complimentary taxi to Blackburn, with a teenage boy and the woman who had damaged the suitcase. Our university friend greeted us, pale with worry. She was aware there had been a derailment and a railway official had escorted her to an office and prepared some tea for her while she hoped for information.
With the invincibility of youth, we pushed the derailment from our minds and proceeded with the social outing, which included a unforgettable performance by Blackburn drag queen Clitheroe Kate. No one died in the incident, even though several people required hospital treatment. Helen and I got away with bruises and general soreness from the force of the sudden jolt in the carriage. Our speed had been decreasing to approach Leeds station, which had been the primary reason in avoiding serious injury. Since nobody was badly hurt made it easier not to focus on the “what ifs” but the child was the one who changed my outlook profoundly. Looking after her and reassuring her distracted me from my own fear and taught me the importance of looking outwards in a crisis. As time passed, I have often wondered if she remembered anything about it, and how big a deal it had been for her.
Helen and I have remained friends for more than three decades and Pudsey has become shorthand for our ability to cope with anything, as long as we're side by side. Having her companionship during the accident gave me the impression I was shielded against the full horror of the event. The accident additionally altered my perspective on different emergencies, offering me a new viewpoint – and serving as a reminder that, no matter how dire circumstances appear, it is always a privilege to age.
