Mother hit by two trains in ‘horror’ incident says ‘avoidable mistakes’ led to loss of arm and leg
A woman who lost an arm and a leg after being hit by two trains has told Sky News “avoidable mistakes and failings” led to her life-changing injuries.
Sarah de Lagarde slipped on a puddle on the platform at High Barnet underground station in north London and fell in a gap between a stationary train and the platform in September 2022.
The fall alone was enough to break her nose and two front teeth but no one could have predicted the horror that was to follow – especially Ms de Lagarde, who remained conscious throughout the entire ordeal.
“The train then departed and took my right arm with it,” she told The UK Tonight With Sarah-Jane Mee.
Despite shouting for help nobody heard her – so the next train came into the station, claiming Ms de Lagarde’s right leg.
“I was still conscious after that and still determined to make it home,” she said.
“In my mind’s eye, I could see my two daughters and they were telling me ‘Mummy, you have to come home’.”
Ms de Lagarde said the thought of her daughters kept her going
Ms de Lagarde remained on the train track for around 15 minutes before someone raised the alarm, and it took another hour for emergency services to arrive.
“There was a series of things that delayed my saving,” she told Sky News.
“I was told that switching off the power line took ages because no one knew who to contact, so the paramedics couldn’t get under the train to get me out of there.
“There were so many avoidable mistakes and failings that Transport for London (TfL) has allowed to happen.
“I have to live with the fact that it could have been just a slip and someone could have found me. and I could have just got away with just a broken nose.”
Ms de Lagarde was told it was a ‘miracle’ she survived
Ms de Lagarde was told by doctors that she nearly died 10 times the night of the accident, and it was a complete miracle she survived.
“It sounds like something from a horror movie,” Sarah-Jane Mee said to Ms de Lagarde, a mother-of-two who now has a robotic arm and prosthetic leg.
They have, to some extent, allowed her to carry on with normal life, but the implications of her accident are still felt by all of those around her.
Ms de Lagarde now has a robotic arm and prosthetic leg
“It has been a really tough year,” she said.
“I hold on to the fact that if I survived, I survived for a reason, and it is to highlight the fact that these safety procedures, that TfL think they have, are not sufficient – otherwise I would not be here with these injuries.”
The London Underground network is used by two million people every single day. Every month, there are an average of 16 incidents of people falling between the train and the platform, according to TfL figures covering 2006 to 2018.
Since 2003, the London Underground has been a subsidiary of TfL.
Asked what needs to be done to make the London Underground network safer, Ms de Lagarde said: “In my thinking, it is not just a money question – it is the fact that we are led to believe that CCTV is being watched live: it is not.
“Why are there no sensors on the tracks? Why is there no staff in the stations?
“I didn’t sacrifice an arm and a leg for nothing to happen.”
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Nick Dent, the director of customer relations at London Underground, said: “Our thoughts continue to be with Sarah de Lagarde and her family following the devastating incident at High Barnet station last year.
“We have offered her direct support through our Sarah Hope line service, and we remain receptive to Sarah’s views about the network.”
He said safety remains the top priority at London Underground and measures are continually put in place to improve the network.
Prince Harry has lost his legal challenge over the level of security he receives when he is in the UK.
The ruling was handed down by Judge Sir Geoffrey Vos at the Royal Courts of Justice in central London on Friday – following the two-day appeal hearing at the same court last month.
He told the court that while the Duke of Sussex‘s safety concerns were both “powerful and moving”, his “sense of grievance” did not “translate into a legal argument”.
“The conclusion, in my judgment, with which my colleagues Lord Justice Bean and Lord Justice Edith agreed, was that the Duke of Sussex’s appeal would be dismissed,” he said.
Prince Harry, 40, was challenging the original decision by High Court judge Sir Peter Lane in February 2024 that the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures (Ravec) was right to downgrade his high-level police protection for when he is back in the country.
Ravec, the body responsible for the security of high-level figures, made their decision in February 2020 – after Harry and Meghan stopped working as senior royals and went to live in Canada and later the US.
Harry, who was not present for the judgment, received full, publicly funded security protection up until that point.
The Home Office, which has legal responsibility for Ravec’s decisions, said security decisions were now taken on a “case-by-case” basis.
The Duke of Sussex outside the Royal Courts Of Justice during the two-day hearing. Pic: PA
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After stepping back from royal duties, the duke argued that his private protection team in the US no longer had access to the UK intelligence information needed to keep his wife and children safe.
During the appeal hearing in April, which he travelled to the UK to attend in person, his barrister Shaheed Fatima KC said his safety, security, and life were “at stake”, and that the “human dimension” of the case should not be forgotten.
She said Harry believed he was “singled out” for “inferior treatment” and that Ravec did not follow its own “terms of reference” when making their decision.
But Sir Geoffrey said on Friday: “The duke was in effect stepping in and out of the cohort of protection provided by Ravec.
“Outside the UK, he was outside the cohort, but when in the UK, his security would be considered as appropriate.”
Therefore, Ravec’s decision was “understandable and perhaps predictable”, he told the court.
The duke could now take the case to the Supreme Court, but he would have to prove there is public interest in the case being heard there.
Legal commentator Joshua Rozenberg told Sky News after the judgment: “What the Supreme Court will look at is whether this is a case of general public interest. It seems to me it’s one of very, very specific importance to Prince Harry.” Therefore, he “wouldn’t hold out much hope”.
UK
Comedian and actor Russell Brand bailed after appearing in court charged with rape and sexual assault
Russell Brand has been granted bail after appearing in court charged with sexual offences including rape.
During the brief hearing at Westminster Magistrates’ Court, the 49-year-old spoke only to confirm his name, date of birth, and address, also confirming to the judge that he understood his bail conditions.
Russell Brand outside Westminster Magistrates’ Court. Pic: Reuters
Brand, who has been living in the US, was charged by post last month with one count each of rape, indecent assault and oral rape – as well as two counts of sexual assault – in connection with incidents involving four separate women between 1999 and 2005.
The allegations were first made in a joint investigation by The Sunday Times, The Times and Channel 4 Dispatches in September 2023.
The comedian and actor did not say anything as he entered the court
The comedian, actor and author has denied the accusations and said he has “never engaged in non-consensual activity”.
Appearing before Senior District Judge Paul Goldspring, Brand stood to confirm his name and address. He then sat down while the charges were read to the court.
Brand surrounded by media. Pic: Reuters
Brand is charged with the rape of a woman in 1999 in the Bournemouth area. She alleges that after meeting Brand at a theatrical performance and chatting to him later in her hotel room, she returned from the toilet to find he’d removed some of his clothes. She claims he asked her to take photos of him, and then raped her.
The court also heard of another of Brand’s alleged victims, who has accused him of indecently assaulting her in 2001 by “grabbing her arm and dragging her towards a male toilet” at a TV station.
Brand is accused of the oral rape and sexual assault of a woman he met in 2004 in London. He is accused of grabbing her breasts before allegedly pulling her into a toilet.
The final complainant is a radio worker who has accused Brand of sexually assaulting her between 2004 and 2005 by “kissing” and “grabbing” her breasts and buttocks.
Brand leaves court. Pic: Reuters
The judge referred the case up to the Crown Court – informally known as the Old Bailey.
Brand was asked to supply both his US and UK addresses to the court.
When asked if he understood his bail conditions, he replied, “Yes”.
The case was adjourned and Brand, of Hambleden, Buckinghamshire, was told he must appear at the Old Bailey on 30 May.
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