Posted on 07/19/2012 7:03:41 PM PDT by COBOL2Java
The woman, dressed in black and carrying a red bag, appeared to try to cross over both sets of Red Line tracks between 9:15 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Wednesday night before stopping on the center barrier. She appeared "lost, almost confused," says Jen Voss, who tweeted a picture of the incident.
Metro reports the 37-year-old woman is French, does not speak English and was trying to cross from the Shady Grove side to the Glenmont side of the tracks.
"If you can believe it, it seemed like an honest mistake," Voss tells WTOP in an email.
Others tried to help, but there wasn't much they could do, says Voss. Fellow riders tried to lure her back to the platform, concerned about the threat of electrocution.
Metro staff stopped the trains and shut off the electricity, before Metro Transit Police officers removed her from the median.
"I don't think she understood the risk she put herself in," says Metro spokesman Dan Stessel. "She clearly doesn't understand how Metro operates."
The woman was not injured and there are no reports she is mentally handicapped, Stessel says.
The third rail is located immediately against the light grate on which the woman was standing. It is constantly live with the 750 volts it feeds to trains, says Stessel. The Red Line is Metro's busiest track.
"Needless to say, she is incredibly lucky," he says.
Anyone who witnesses another rider on or near the tracks should first contact the station manager, who can cut off power and alert trains to stop, says Stessel.
Riders who drop something on the tracks should never climb down themselves, he says. Station managers have special equipment that can retrieve dropped objects.
There have been moments when riders "heroically" come to the aid of other passengers who fell on the tracks and were in mortal danger, he says. That last- ditch effort should only be employed if there is no other option.
Transit police interviewed the woman and released her. She is not facing any charges.
A video of the incident shows the crowd clapping after the woman is safely brought back to the platform.
"Everyone reacted swiftly," says Voss.
She must have got off the train from NYC
...she's lucky it was during daytime
Most onlookers seemed content with video recording her rather than helping her. Weird.
I'd wager those 750 volts might have dampened their altruism a bit...
I am aware of the 3rd rail. It's not a snake; it doesn't leap out and bite you. It's an inanimate object that you must touch. I am confident I would have been able to walk or jump over it if it meant saving a life as would most anyone there.
Hollande supporter, no doubt.
Don’t know about the DC subway, but our system has pull-stations that cut the power and summon emergency crews.
Did she have a cone head? It could have been an alien pretending she is from Fraaance?
Test run to check security.
“Confused”?? She’s never ridden on the Paris metro?
The third rail will take you away.
Typical Dcers.
She wasn’t confused. Shes just f***ing stupid.
Looks like a shot from a TV commercial.
“Wondering if your deodorant is working?”
French, huh? Was she carrying a white flag?
“If you can believe it, it seemed like an honest mistake,” Voss tells WTOP in an email.
Sorry, not buying it. Alcohol, drugs or some health or mental condition had to be at work here. No one of room temperature IQ would do that.
If that woman touches the 3rd rail and you are holding her hand both your geese will be cooked. One thing the helping person can do is to insulate himself from the ground (such as the other two rails that act as the return path for the current.) The voltage itself is not that bad, but the current is unlimited at the source, as far as the human body is concerned. Arcing is unlikely, but the muscle contraction at that voltage will be so strong that people break arms and legs, or get into closer contact with the power rail.
The 3rd rail is always located away from the platform with the thought that someone might fall or be pushed. Pulling her toward the platform would have been easily accomplished w/o her touching a rail.
You can, btw, survive touching a 3rd rail. It's happened
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