Friday, June 3, 2011

VOMIT TRAIN!!!!!!

SFAPPEAL IS THERE:

Officials at the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency are looking into why a Muni light rail operator did not let people off a train after a passenger became ill and vomited onboard, a spokesman said.

An outbound K-T train took on an unpleasant odor when a passenger began throwing up at about 8:10 a.m. at Montgomery Station, Muni spokesman Paul Rose said.

The operator was ordered to allow passengers off at Montgomery station and then to take the train directly to West Portal station, where it would be cleaned, Rose said.

"The plan was always to take the train out of service at West Portal," he said.

Control room officials, however, noticed the train still had passengers aboard as it bypassed Powell Street and Civic Center stations, and ordered the operator to stop at Van Ness station to do so, Rose said. When the train finally stopped at Van Ness station, the passengers were allowed to leave. It was then taken to the West Portal station, cleaned, and returned to service. No significant delays were reported, Rose said.

Here's how I picture it:

INT. MUNI TRAIN - UNDERGROUND

A crowded Muni train. The morning commute. Passengers sit and stand, some looking at their phones, some listening to music through white earbuds. A newspaper rustles.

Suddenly a SICK PASSENGER begins throwing up. There is an audible gasp and other PASSENGERS scurry to get out of the way of the noxious stream.

DON, a suit-wearing businessman in his late 30's standing near the front of the train, yells to the driver.

DON

Driver, stop the train! This man is ill! He is vomiting!

We see the DRIVER look over his shoulder as the train roars toward MONTGOMERY STATION.

DRIVER

The fuck you say!?

DON

Stop the train! This man needs help!

The DRIVER looks forward as the train nears the brightly-lit STATION. He narrows his eyes. We see him push the train throttle all the way forward.

DRIVER
(muttering)

Fuck that.

The train roars through the station. PASSENGERS begin screaming. PEGGY, a chubby, early-50's receptionist type, looks at the DRIVER beseechingly.

PEGGY

We're all going to die in here!

PEGGY faints.

DRIVER

Maybe.

(P.S. I'm counting this as a Muni accident, and have reset the counter accordingly.)

1 comment:

Tamagosan said...

Yet another reason to bike to work. At least when you roll through vomit in the bike lanes, it splatters on your back and the smell just goes toward those behind you.