Consequences of public suicide

Maccapacca

Maccapacca

Maccapacca

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Don
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Sunny Sussex
Today my journey was delayed by someone jumping onto the tracks at East Croydon, whilst being pretty sad that someone takes their own life and I'm not moaning about the delay in anyway shape or form it got me thinking about the collateral effects. Who cleans up? what do the train drivers then do? do they get support from their companies? how do the emergency services deal with something like this?

http://www.croydonguardian.co.uk/ne...trains_after_man_hit_at_East_Croydon_station/

It also happened 6 months a go with a mother and child on my route which very sad.

http://www.standard.co.uk/news/lond...ding-her-child-jump-on-to-tracks-8545387.html

Tonight it'll be back to normal like nothing ever happened :(
 
I shall input due to knowing someone who had this happen. My dad's mate WAS a freight train driver, I emphasis the WAS. He was driving his train (fully loaded with coal, takes about 1 mile or so to stop) when a guy jumped off an overhead walkway and disintegrated on the front of his window, the worse pat was the guys left hand and about 7 inches of arm got caught on a smashed piece of glass...the driver had 12 months of therapy and counselling and still refuses to drive a train. He got a decent payout and now works as a secretary at the freight train depot in Crewe...
 
I feel much pity for the person committing suicide, to be in such a dark place that taking your own life is more tolerable is utterly sad.

However, speaking as someone who had the misfortune to witness the immediate aftermath of a man who lay his head on a train track to kill himself when I was only 13, I know the trauma a bystander can suffer from witnessing a suicide.

I had nightmares for months afterwards.
 
I was delayed by the same person! (no trains from Caterham going till about 8:45)

As what Jaffa_Far said, must be horrible for for the driver to see something like that happen. Causes no end of chaos as they kept telling people to take a bus to purley.
 
The drivers are first of all obviously replaced by another driver as they'd be massively in shock, and will be suspended for a set minimum amount of time where I would hope and assume they are given counselling and support.

I think the clean-up will be handled by the fire service, although I could be wrong.
 
I'd question who and what responsibilities they are leaving behind as a consequence of their suicide, not a delay in peoples commutes
 
Usually the British transport police if they are direct in the area (they are on the busy routes)/or normal police and any specialists are drafted in to deal with these sorts of incidents

Unfortunately know someone who took their own life on a level crossing in our small town, not a nice thing to experience for anyone who witnesses it, especially passengers, train drivers, people who are involved with incident after it happens. I could imagine its quite a horrific thing to see, deal with.

The train drivers wouldn't deal with it, I would imagine they are already scarred enough by watching it happen, let alone having to pick up the pieces afterwards.
 
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I led to believe that a train driver that witnesses a suicide is immediately on leave for 6 months at full pay and private psychiatric support is also paid for.
 
Yes, they get support from their company, majority will never feel comfortable behind the wheel of a train again. Not sure on national rails side, however of the tube they have a dedicated team to deal with the cleanup however in most cases on the tube, they survive due to the speeds and the way the track is designed.
 
Rhodri said:
The drivers are first of all obviously replaced by another driver as they'd be massively in shock, and will be suspended for a set minimum amount of time where I would hope and assume they are given counselling and support.

I think the clean-up will be handled by the fire service, although I could be wrong.
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I was on a train back from Reading one day, going through Winchester when someone dived infront of the south-bound train. The police hosed it all down and we were stuck 2 train lengths outside the station, we got a cup of tea...Worse part was seeing the white sheet covering the man flapping about in the wind. Turns out, the guy got caught cheating, killed his wife and his bit on the side, then topped himself...

The image of the sheet and very bloody guy still haunt me and that was a few years back...But still nothing compared to my dad's mate...
 
It does come across as a very selfish way of doing it. If you read even just the stories posted above, then it's clear you can easily ruin other people's lives in the process. If you want to kill yourself then slit your wrists in the bath or something and be done with it. That said, surely someone who is contemplating committing suicide is rather ill in the head and perhaps should not be entirely to blame either way? Dunno..
 
The problem is, the kind of person wiling to kill themselves isn't likely to be thinking in a clear frame of mind which would enable them to consider the consequences of others witnessing their death.

Two friends at school had a parent commit suicide, one jumped off a bridge onto a motorway (not pleasant) & another gassed himself in his car in the garage at the family home (to be found by the son, my friend) - I'd like to think I'd consider others before doing anything like that - but if I was capable of thinking rationally like I am now - I wouldn't I'd do it in the first place.
 
I believe in the case of TFL, it's part of their emergency response team who will deal with the cleanup once the Police have finished their investigation.

They were interviewed in a documentary where they discussed what they do.... I think it might have been the BBC's Tube documentary series narrated by Julian Barrett which was on in 2011.
 
Nexus said:
I believe in the case of TFL, it's part of their emergency response team who will deal with the cleanup once the Police have finished their investigation.

They were interviewed in a documentary where they discussed what they do.... I think it might have been the BBC's Tube documentary series narrated by Julian Barrett which was on in 2011.
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You're right :) Cracking series, the older ones were better...
 
My dad who worked for London Underground all his life, started out as a station assistant on the central line around Tottenham court road.

He had many stories about suicide attempts and having to clean up after them :( nice.
On the upside of that though he was awarded twice for assisting and personally rescuing a jumper who "wasn't very good" at trying to commit suicide, by pinning him down in the crawl space they had beneath the track.

Mum has them framed on the wall.
 
Freddie1980 said:
I led to believe that a train driver that witnesses a suicide is immediately on leave for 6 months at full pay and private psychiatric support is also paid for.
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They get a month.

The clean up is done by the people who maintain the trains. It goes through the train wash which gets most of it off. The only things recognisable as human are bits of bone and teeth, sometimes the head is decapitated and is thrown down the tracks somewhere, the police will deal with that (if you throw a tomato at a wall its much like a body hitting a train). The front of the train is generally smashed up and needs to have the coupler and front end gang way replaced. Costing the train companies thousands in parts and labour.
It depends on the service depot but sometimes guys are asked to volunteer to do the clean up and at one point were given some time off after, but this is no longer given.
There is always an increase of jumpers around xmas time.

What's a lot worse is when a train hits a cow.
 
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