Man loses leg after backpack traps him under departing train in Belgium

The incident at Heide station

On Monday 26 October, at around 17.15, a 34-year-old man was seriously injured on the platform of Heide station in Kalmthout, north of Antwerp. Witnesses told De Standaard that two men had been rowdily banging on a train that was ready to leave. When the train started moving, the man's backpack became trapped between two carriages, pulling him onto the tracks, where he fell under the train. The first reports appeared on the evening of Monday 26 October in Belgian and Dutch outlets, and four publications, De Standaard, Telegraaf, NOS and VRT NWS, carried the account.

Conflicting accounts of what led up to it

The reports differ on why the men were at the train. De Standaard describes the pair as disruptive, while VRT NWS says the man and another man had tried to stop the train, although the reason remained unclear. Telegraaf, citing HLN, adds that the man and another traveller had been removed from the train after causing a nuisance, and that he had struck the train on the platform as it tried to leave. NOS, citing Belgian media, says he had hit the doors of the train before he fell. These details come from witness statements and media reports, and the sources do not show an official confirmation of any of them.

Emergency response and injuries

A team from the Grens police zone was the first to reach the scene and gave the man first aid. According to De Standaard, the officers applied a tourniquet and started resuscitation while they waited for an ambulance. The man was taken to hospital in critical condition, and NOS reports that he remains in a life-threatening situation. VRT reported that he had lost a leg, and a police spokesperson quoted by VRT said the man had lost it when he fell under the train. Police have not yet released his identity.

Investigation and rail disruption

The exact circumstances of the accident are to be examined further, and police are looking into how the incident could have happened. Rail traffic was interrupted for a time as a result. De Standaard places the disruption between Kalmthout and Essen, while NOS gives the section as Kapellen and Essen, and neither source states how long the disruption lasted. The differing track sections are a discrepancy between the two reports rather than a development in the case.