“I could hear young women shouting, ‘Get off him, get off him.’ I witnessed two men aggressively kicking and punching another man who was on the ground.
“My only thought was to halt the train so we could get those men away from the other man.”
Renée Alleyne recently observed an assault on a man in a Docklands Light Railway (DLR) carriage at Stratford Station.
She recounted to the BBC that no one intervened to assist, despite activating an emergency alert.
“I kept pressing the alarm,” she mentioned.
“We were yelling and signaling down the platform for assistance, but there was no response. The alarm wasn’t acknowledged.
“The staff member did not take action, and I just watched the train doors close.
“It felt like a scene from a horror movie.”
Siwan Hayward, Transport for London (TfL) director for security, policing, and enforcement, stated: “It seems the customer’s call through the help point was acknowledged, but communication was hampered due to the noise levels at the station.”
Ms. Alleyne, a resident of Newham, told BBC London that even as the train departed the station, she kept trying to get help but received no assistance.
“We encountered a staff member further down the platform who directed us to speak with colleagues in the main atrium, where we found two other TfL staff members and two police officers,” she explained.
She eventually secured help from the police but felt so distressed by the incident that she took to social media to express her frustrations, leading to thousands of views on her post.
The British Transport Police (BTP) reported that they were called to Stratford International DLR around 10:00 PM (BST) on Friday, August 22, following allegations of an assault. Officers arrived, but both the victim and the assailant had fled the scene.
Ms. Alleyne suggested that there should be enhancements, such as clearer instructions on which alarm to use, ensuring alarms receive prompt responses, and training for staff to better handle emergencies.
In response, Ms. Hayward from TfL said, “Everyone deserves to feel safe while traveling in London, and we deeply regret the experience our customer had when trying to seek assistance at our station.
“We are cooperating with the British Transport Police in their ongoing investigation.
“We’ve tested the help point at Stratford and confirmed that it is operational.
“Our staff are trained to assist customers and report incidents to the police, and this should have occurred during the situation in Stratford. We’re looking into this matter further.”
On Friday, BTP officials released CCTV footage of men they wish to question concerning the suspected assault on the DLR train approaching Stratford International Station.
Anyone with information that may aid the investigation is encouraged to contact the BTP.
