A train driver was forced to flee for his life after a blood-covered man burst into his cab and attempted to hijack the train, just a week after the Huntingdon train stabbings.

The shocking incident occurred late on Saturday, 8 November, when the Great Western Railway (GWR) service was travelling from London Paddington to a depot in Reading. The train, which had no passengers on board, had stopped at a red signal near Southall railway station following reports of a trespasser on the track.

The driver, monitoring the carriages via onboard cameras, spotted the man making his way towards the cab. Moments later, the suspect—covered in blood—forced his way inside, threatened the driver, and grabbed his mobile phone to stop him calling for help. The man reportedly claimed that people were trying to kill him.

Despite repeated attempts to calm his attacker, the driver managed to escape by jumping from the train and raising the alarm. The intruder is then said to have remained in the cab, pressing buttons and sounding the horn in what appeared to be an attempt to start the train.

British Transport Police (BTP) confirmed officers were called to the line near Southall just before midnight. A spokesperson said:
“Officers were called to the line near to Southall railway station, just before midnight on Saturday 8 November, following reports of a trespasser on the tracks acting erratically and threatening a member of railway staff. Officers attended and a man was detained under the Mental Health Act and remains in hospital.”

The disturbing event came just a week after an unrelated knife attack on an LNER service between Doncaster and London King’s Cross on 1 November, in which a train worker was seriously injured. Police say investigations into the Southall incident are ongoing.

Image: British Transport Police