Whale Tail Sculpture Stops Rotterdam Metro Train from Crashing Into Water
A metro train serving the town of Spijkenisse, near Rotterdam, has crashed through the barrier at the end of the track and only the sculpture of a whale has stopped it plummeting into the water below.
The train is now suspended 10 metres above a footpath, thanks to the whale’s tail, and is likely to remain there for some time. ‘We are trying to decide how we can bring the train down in a careful and controlled manner,’ a local safety board spokesman told broadcaster NOS.
The crash happened just before midnight and woke people living in the nearby houses. ‘It was a noise that lasted two or three seconds,’ one said. ‘I realized that there was something on the tail… I thought “something very odd is happening here”.’
The sculpture Saved By a Whale’s Tail, is made of polyester and is the work of Maarten Struijs. The tails were placed in the water at the end of the metro tracks in 2002.
