Benjamin Woods, 34, works as a gateline assistant for Southern. Ahead of World Suicide Prevention Day (10 September), he\u2019s sharing his story after saving somebody\u2019s life on the railway.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had just started my late shift when I spotted a man in his mid-50s leaving the station through the gateline. He initially seemed fine, but when he reappeared an hour later there were clear signs of intoxication. When he approached the gateline he asked if I was a security guard, which rang alarm bells because I\u2019ve never been asked that before, so I stopped what I was doing to keep an eye on him. Once he was on the platform, he suddenly went down onto the tracks. Without hesitating, I put in an emergency call to shut all lines into the station.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs railway staff, we are given training on how to handle these delicate situations, so I put this into practice by approaching the man calmly and urging him to leave the tracks while keeping myself at a safe distance. I repeatedly asked him to get back onto the platform, which he didn\u2019t acknowledge until I upped the level of my voice slightly to break his negative thought cycle. He then listened and finally came up to the platform. Unfortunately, he refused to leave the station and quickly boarded a train to another destination, so I alerted the British Transport Police (BTP) and GTR\u2019s Travel Safe Officers, who took over and supported him further.<\/p>\n
\u201cA couple of days later, the man came back to thank me for saving his life. This was the first time I\u2019d made a lifesaving intervention, so it was quite emotional knowing I\u2019d helped him see another day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Benjamin, who live in Pulborough, said he was able to empathise with this man after experiencing his own mental health struggles as a teenager.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was able to put myself in their shoes because I previously suffered from depression when I was a teenager, due to various situations which saw me at my lowest. Having this experience helped me when talking to this man because I\u2019ve been there and understand that we all need help sometimes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Benjamin added that suicide prevention training at work has helped boost his confidence when it comes to making lifesaving interventions.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe training provided by Southern and the Samaritans is brilliant because it gave me an insight of the different situations I could face and how to stay safe in a high-pressure situation. It taught me how to spot a vulnerable person and the best way to connect with them, so I can guide them to safety. It can be difficult approaching someone who is risking their life, however sometimes it only takes a simple conversation to turn things around.\u201d<\/p>\n
The rail operator is encouraging members of the public to look out for one another when travelling. If people spot concerning behaviour, they can text the British Transport Police on 6106, or call 999 if it is an emergency.\u00a0\u00a0People can also call Samaritans anytime on 116 123.<\/p>\n
Image credit: GTR<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Benjamin Woods, 34, works as a gateline assistant for Southern. Ahead of World Suicide Prevention Day (10 September), he\u2019s sharing his story after saving somebody\u2019s life on the railway. \u201cI had just started my late shift when I spotted a man in his mid-50s leaving the station through the gateline. He initially seemed fine, but [\u2026]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2356,8221,47,43,16016,2021,85],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-534351","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-mental-health","category-people","category-rail-news","category-safety","category-train-operating-companies","category-training","category-uk"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t