gross
 

Bit of a sticky situation ... another fine day on the NJ/NY mass transit system. One derailment, one man with arm stuck in toilet.


Commuter Gets Arm Stuck in Train Toilet


NEW YORK (AP) - A man riding a Metro-North train dropped his cell phone in a toilet and got his arm stuck trying to retrieve it Thursday, forcing the train to stop and delaying the evening commute for thousands of people.

Edwin Gallart, 41, of the Bronx, was stuck with his arm in the toilet for 90 minutes, The Advocate of Stamford reported in Friday's editions.

The incident happened on the 6:19 p.m. train from Grand Central Terminal. Crew members were alerted to the problem at about 59th Street, a few blocks north of Grand Central.

``When this moron's arm went down the crapper, so did our evening commute,'' Metro-North spokesman Dan Brucker said.

The conductor called for a supervisor, or trainmaster, who boarded the train at 125th Street to help, Brucker said.

As the train continued north on the Harlem Line, the trainmaster tried to remove Gallart's arm from the stainless steel commode, Brucker said.

Twenty minutes later, at 6:38 p.m., police and firefighters boarded the train at Fordham station and began helping Gallart, Brucker said.

Meanwhile, passengers were evacuated and thousands of commuters were delayed because the train sat blocking the platform as the rescue work continued, Brucker said.

Other trains were prevented from reaching the platform at Fordham, and they couldn't stop at four stations to the north as well because they were prevented from switching to the correct track, Brucker said.

Firefighters tried a variety of methods to extricate Gallart's arm. They ended up taking apart the entire toilet, Brucker said.

Gallart's arm was removed from the toilet and he was treated and released from a Fordham-area hospital, Brucker said. His cell phone wasn't retrieved.

The railroad's maintenance department estimated the toilet would take two days and ``several thousand dollars'' to fix, Brucker said.

Gallart could not be reached Thursday night. His home phone number was not listed.

I predict that all NY/NJ transit restrooms will now be equipped with hacksaws. :)

That, or just roll like SEPTA does--no bathrooms on trains.

His Mommy should have pinned his phone to his sleeve. Or nailed it to his head.:rolleyes:

Eww...they should call it SEPTIC, then.

We DO call them septic at times. You ought to see the Subway...it's a fucking toilet.

The longest you could be on a SEPTA train for a continuous trip is two hours (Thorndale to Center City back out to Doylestown). I guess they figure you can hold it that long.

"When this moron's arm went down the crapper, so did our evening commute,'' Metro-North spokesman Dan Brucker said."

I especially liked that part.

Yeah...I'm surprised a public official would talk like that to the press.

He's not a public official. The A in SEPTA stands for authority. These bastards, like the Port Authority, Turnpike Authority, Airport Authority, Sewer Authority, etc are above mere public officials. They're above the public and their officials. They answer only to God and bribes.:(

Me too. I did wonder, though, if it was an accurate or manufactured quote. (not that reporters EVER make stuff up).

HEY - what are you saying, eh?

I never make shit up .. unless I'm on deadline.

Is that when it's attributed to a person close to the source that only spoke on the condition of anonymity?;)

Generally ... and those *sources* seem to appear always at just the right time *AHEMJAYSONBLAIRAHEM*.

the needs of one moron outweigh the needs of the many
 

Was he hoping to pull it out and keep on talking? Isn't there water or some less savory liquid in there? And why does one toilet cost "several thousand dollars" to repair???? Reminds me of the simpsons episode where Homer gets arm caught in vending machine - "you mean you were holding on to the candy bar the whole time?"

one time i dropped my pager in a toilet on the ship as it was flushing...know what i did? said "shit"...sure as heck didn't stick my hand in and try and retrieve it....although it was my alarm clock at the time and i was late for muster the next day....i can't even imagine what i would have to drop in a public toilet that would be important enough to retrieve...