26-05-2025
Man rescued after being trapped for 90 minutes under a train armrest while looking for his Airpod
A man had to be rescued by no less than 11 firefighters after he got trapped under a train armrest while searching for his Airpod.
The traveller was stuck for 90 minutes before the emergency services sawed off the armrest so he could get free.
He had been rummaging between the seat and the train's side panel but his arm swelled up and became jammed in the gap on Friday evening.
A luggage rack and a seat also had to be hacked away with a heavy hydraulic rescue device to liberate the man - who has not been named.
Much to the amusement of other passengers, firefighters had to put up a screen so that curious travellers on the German regional train could not take photos of the unfortunately wedged-in man.
The train was held at the platform at Lehrte station near Hannover, Lower Saxony, for more than an hour before the was then rescued beneath the seat.
The other passengers had to get replacement services to continue their journey to Brunswick, Bild reported.
Police were also in attendance while the platform had been cordoned off.
Emergency services were on standby and treated the man once he became free.
This is not the first time someone has had to be broken free after getting stuck on a train.
In 2019, an 11-year-old boy had to be rescued by firefighters after he got his head stuck under a seat on a high-speed train in south-east China.
The unfortunate incident happened on New Year's Day on the G636 train travelling to Shangrao, Jiangxi province, when the boy crawled under the seat in front of him to pick up a water bottle.
However, his head got wedged in the gap between the floor and the seat, leaving him trapped for about 30 minutes.
The boy got trapped at about noon, when the train was travelling from Yingtan North station to Shangrao station.
Staff members on the train immediately alerted emergency services to stand by at the next station.
Footage of the incident shows the embarrassed boy sprawled on the train floor, unable to move as rescuers boarded the train to his aid.
'The boy was trying to retrieve his water bottle but got trapped under the seat,' a spokesperson for the Shangrao Fire Department told reporters, adding that rescuers freed the child in two minutes.
Thanks to the firefighters' swift efforts, the train was not delayed and departed Shangrao station on time. The boy was unhurt, according to The Paper.
According to the report, the boy was travelling with his family, who were on their way back home to Wuyuan county after celebrating New Year's in Nanchang city, about two hours away by train.
