An apparently drunk driver left his train at Obzoulec station in the Belgian province of Hainaut on Thursday evening. The man missed the stop and also ignored two red lights. Belgian Railways (NMBS) has launched an internal investigation.
Passengers on the final train from Tournai to Brussels must have imagined their train journey differently, but on Thursday evening things went completely wrong.
The train driver is said to have blocked the train departing from Tournai station at 10:09pm at Obzoulec station because the driver, who may have been drunk, missed a stop and issued two red lights. The man then angrily left his post before continuing on foot, a witness to the incident told Belga News Agency.
Infrabel spokeswoman Jessica Nebel says the driver did not run a red light. “We can say with certainty that no red flag was passed,” she added. “We are in contact with NMBS and have passed on this information.”
“NMBS takes the facts very seriously and begins an investigation immediately,” says NMBS spokeswoman Elissa Rowe. In a video and photo, the train driver can be seen distributing water and cakes to stranded passengers. “She kept apologizing. We were gathered in a van. “We were about 25 people,” one witness said. “A bus was supposed to come to pick us up, but it went in the wrong direction. Then another driver arrived, but according to what the train driver said, he was not authorized to transport passengers.”
After this series of incidents, the bus finally arrived at Opzolik station after waiting for about three hours.
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