Issued on: 02/11/2020 -
The train's front carriage was left hanging above the water, propped up by the sculture called, improbably, "Saved by the Whale's Tail" Robin Utrecht ANP/AFP
Spijkenisse (Netherlands) (AFP)
A Dutch metro train was saved from disaster Monday when it smashed through a safety barrier but was prevented from plummeting into water by a sculpture of a whale tail.
The driver of the train, who was the only person on board, was unharmed in the incident which happened just after midnight at Spijkenisse, near the port city of Rotterdam.
The front carriage was left hanging 10 metres (30 feet) above the water, propped up only by the giant silver-coloured sculpture -- called, improbably, "Saved by the Whale's Tail."
"The metro went off the rails and it landed on a monument called Saved by the Whale's Tail. So that literally happened," Carly Gorter of the Rijnmond regional safety authority told AFP.
"Because of the whale's tail the driver actually was saved, it's incredible."
The driver was later held for questioning, the safety authority said. The cause of the crash was still being investigated.
The sculpture was built around 20 years ago in a park underneath the raised metro, its name a deliberate play on the fact that it is a "tail track" at the end of the line.
It features two large whale tails poking out of the water, one of which saved the train.
A team of experts, including the architect of the sculpture, was now on site to work out how to safely remove the train.
"The problem is it's water around it, so a crane isn't able to get there," said Gorter.
"We have a lot of wind at the moment and that's one of the issues that we're facing, that's a risk and worry."
© 2020 AFP
Spijkenisse (Netherlands) (AFP)
A Dutch metro train was saved from disaster Monday when it smashed through a safety barrier but was prevented from plummeting into water by a sculpture of a whale tail.
The driver of the train, who was the only person on board, was unharmed in the incident which happened just after midnight at Spijkenisse, near the port city of Rotterdam.
The front carriage was left hanging 10 metres (30 feet) above the water, propped up only by the giant silver-coloured sculpture -- called, improbably, "Saved by the Whale's Tail."
"The metro went off the rails and it landed on a monument called Saved by the Whale's Tail. So that literally happened," Carly Gorter of the Rijnmond regional safety authority told AFP.
"Because of the whale's tail the driver actually was saved, it's incredible."
The driver was later held for questioning, the safety authority said. The cause of the crash was still being investigated.
The sculpture was built around 20 years ago in a park underneath the raised metro, its name a deliberate play on the fact that it is a "tail track" at the end of the line.
It features two large whale tails poking out of the water, one of which saved the train.
A team of experts, including the architect of the sculpture, was now on site to work out how to safely remove the train.
"The problem is it's water around it, so a crane isn't able to get there," said Gorter.
"We have a lot of wind at the moment and that's one of the issues that we're facing, that's a risk and worry."
© 2020 AFP
What a fluke: Dutch whale tail sculpture catches metro train
SPIJKENISSE, Netherlands — This really was a fluke.
© Provided by The Canadian Press
The driver of a metro train escaped injury when the front carriage rammed through the end of an elevated section of rails and was caught by a sculpture of a whale's tail near the Dutch port city of Rotterdam.
The train was left perched upon one of two tail fins known as “flukes” several meters (yards) above the ground.
It created such a stir locally that authorities urged sightseers to stay away, adding that coronavirus restrictions were in force.
Even so, some 50 people were at the scene late Monday morning as engineers tried to work out how to stabilize and then remove the train amid strengthening winds.
“A team of experts is investigating how we can make it safe and get it down,” Carly Gorter, a spokeswoman for the local security authority, said in a telephone interview.
“It's tricky,” she added.
The authority said late Monday that a crane would attempt to lift the train off the whale Tuesday morning.
The architect who designed the sculpture, Maarten Struijs, told Dutch broadcaster RTL he was pleased that it likely saved the life of the driver.
“I'm surprised it's so strong,” he said. “If plastic has been standing for 20 years, you don't expect it to hold a metro carriage.”
The company that operates the metro line said the driver was uninjured and there were no passengers on the train when it crashed through stop barriers at the end of the station in the town of Spijkenisse, on the southern edge of Rotterdam, early Monday morning. The station is the final stop on the metro line.
Authorities launched an investigation into how the train could plough through the barrier at the end of the rail tracks. The driver was being interviewed as part of the probe, the Rijnmondveilig security authority said.
The Associated Press
The driver of a metro train escaped injury when the front carriage rammed through the end of an elevated section of rails and was caught by a sculpture of a whale's tail near the Dutch port city of Rotterdam.
The train was left perched upon one of two tail fins known as “flukes” several meters (yards) above the ground.
It created such a stir locally that authorities urged sightseers to stay away, adding that coronavirus restrictions were in force.
Even so, some 50 people were at the scene late Monday morning as engineers tried to work out how to stabilize and then remove the train amid strengthening winds.
“A team of experts is investigating how we can make it safe and get it down,” Carly Gorter, a spokeswoman for the local security authority, said in a telephone interview.
“It's tricky,” she added.
The authority said late Monday that a crane would attempt to lift the train off the whale Tuesday morning.
The architect who designed the sculpture, Maarten Struijs, told Dutch broadcaster RTL he was pleased that it likely saved the life of the driver.
“I'm surprised it's so strong,” he said. “If plastic has been standing for 20 years, you don't expect it to hold a metro carriage.”
The company that operates the metro line said the driver was uninjured and there were no passengers on the train when it crashed through stop barriers at the end of the station in the town of Spijkenisse, on the southern edge of Rotterdam, early Monday morning. The station is the final stop on the metro line.
Authorities launched an investigation into how the train could plough through the barrier at the end of the rail tracks. The driver was being interviewed as part of the probe, the Rijnmondveilig security authority said.
The Associated Press
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