The train driver's quick response meant the man's life was saved.

Train driver’s quick reaction saves man’s life at Harringay station

by Flora Drury Friday, September 7, 2012
5:44 PM

A man lying on the tracks at Harringay station was saved after the train driver managed to hit the emergency brake just in time.

The traumatised First Capital Connect (FCC) driver narrowly avoided hitting the man after spotting him as the train pulled into the station at about 4.30pm on Wednesday afternoon.

It was the second time in a matter of months he had been faced with someone in front of his train, said an FCC spokesman.

Two other FCC drivers - travelling as passengers on the train - helped the man up onto the platform.

One of them sat with the 48-year-old, from Leytonstone, until British Transport Police and the London Ambulance Service arrived.

The man was then detained under the Mental Health Act and taken to hospital for assessment.

An FCC spokesman said: “The driver of the train saved the person’s life by applying the emergency brake. It was the second time in just a few months he had experienced someone apparently trying to end their life in front of his train.

“This was a very distressing experience and its impact on him and other staff cannot be understated. The driver is still off duties.”

But FCC did issue an apology after the relief driver who took over referred to the man on the tracks as a “joker” on the train tannoy.

The spokesman said: “We do regret the choice of words used by the second driver once the train got under way again and apologised on Twitter to the lady who wrote in.

“It can be very difficult for drivers who see their colleagues witness such stressful incidents which can have serious lasting effects.”