Fri 29 July 2005 - Have you ever seen?
I was watching an episode of the West Wing last night where one of the characters sees the body of a homeless man. And I recalled something I saw years ago.
I was on a train going to work out in Burwood, standing by the door. Mine was the next stop. There was an announcement of a delay, and we were crawling along. We passed stopped train, then I looked down to the next track, and saw emergency workers… and a body. It was fully clothed, and possibly covered by a blanket — I didn’t see any flesh. Almost more like a pile of clothes than a person.
It’s sad on two counts. It was not a location where you’d find yourself crossing the tracks to make a shortcut. Obviously that person had decided they wouldn’t be turning up to work that day, and decided to end it all. Once a person is in the path of a train, there’s nothing the unfortunate train driver can do. So that driver had their work day shattered.
Not something I’m in any hurry to see again.
I got off at the next station and walked down the street to my connecting tram, telling a lady coming the other way that city-bound trains would be delayed.