Monday, May 27, 2013

My First Train Crash

On Friday, May 17, just after 16:00, an MTR light rail train crashed. It was the worst derailment in MTR history – 77 people were injured, including a baby. Fortunately, no one was killed. Unfortunately, I was on that train.

I had a rare Friday off from work, so I wanted to go out to the New Territories and look around. I don't get out there as much as I would like. There is far more to Hong Kong than the giant skyscrapers. Most of the city is nature and scenery, but you have to get out of the city to find it.

While I was minding my own business on a small train on a small line between Hang Mei Tsuen and Tong Fong Tsuen, it felt like the train was moving too fast. It's above ground, so you can see everything go by. It's hard to judge speeds on the underground trains because you can't see anything except black tunnels. On this train, we could tell that it was going too fast. I wasn't the only passenger who thought so. In some cities, no one would notice. New York, for example, is not a city known for its smooth subway rides. Hong Kong, on the other hand, has an impressive safety record. Until now.

The train made a turn and all hell broke loose. The front car slowed down for the turn, apparently not enough. The back car didn't slow down at all, knocking half of itself and all of the front car off the tracks. Anyone who was unaware that something was amiss quickly learned otherwise. Even the sleeping passengers could hear the noise. Metal crashed into metal. People screamed. Glass shattered. Before this, I would have thought the abrupt deceleration was the most striking aspect. It was the noise.

Most of the train bid farewell to the tracks and greeted a power line. It didn't flip over or explode or do anything as exaggerated as a movie. It was more like a car impact. Everybody fell to the ground or up against the windows. More than half of the passengers were injured. Most of the injuries were minor. I broke a few bones in my right hand when I tried not to fall down. You're supposed to go limp when you fall to avoid injuries. I bet the people who give that advice never spend much time in train crashes.

Fortunately, it was a smaller train in the New Territories, where there is little traffic. Being above ground was also an exceptionally good thing. Everyone simply walked or crawled or was carried out of the train, paying special attention to downed power lines. If it had derailed in a tunnel, getting everyone out would have been much more difficult.

Everyone just sat near the train and waited. I don't know if people were in shock, but it was more calm than I would have expected. Then the firefighters and paramedics arrived and it got loud and hectic again. It didn't take long for the news cameras and onlookers to show up. Pretty soon, there were at least ten times more responders and observers than there were passengers on the train. I saw more firefighter uniforms than passengers.

A few paramedics asked me if I was injured. They didn't speak much English and my Chinese does not include emergency medical terms. It was obvious the way I was holding my hand that something was wrong. When one of the paramedics grabbed at it, I let out a scream that pretty much told them all they needed to know. They put me in an ambulance after all of the unconscious and bleeding passengers were gone. The doctors at the hospital all spoke English, so it got easier once I was there.

When the doctor showed me the x-rays of my hand, I was just happy it wasn't my foot. I like having hands and I use them all the time, but I need my feet for my career. If it was a foot instead of my hand, my dancing days would probably be over.

My hand is currently better than it was, but I'm still mostly typing this with my left hand. Since it's gotten better than it was, the doctors assume it will get better than it is. I'm thankful to be in a place that has excellent healthcare at bargain basement prices. Hong Kong has well trained doctors and nurses, and my insurance pays for practically everything.

The government is going to fine the MTR HK$15 million. Now they're talking about a big lawsuit against the MTR. I don't know any details, but I'm sure if it happens, the passengers won't see any money.

I don't want their money anyway. I just want them to figure out what happened, fix it and make sure it never happens again.

4 comments:

  1. wow, glad your ok.

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  2. was wondering why there weren't updates in ages! Glad to hear its not super serious

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  3. I'm ok. There were a quite a few people who were worse off. From what I understand, everyone is getting better now.

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