A mother-of-two City worker who lost her arm and leg after being hit by two Tube trains ‘contributed’ to her own life-changing injuries, according to Transport for London.
Sarah de Lagarde, 46, slipped on a wet platform at High Barnet station in north London in September 2022 and fell down the gap between the train and the platform.
Ms De Lagarde, global head of corporate affairs at City investment firm Janus Henderson, was returning home from work when the accident happened at 10pm on September 30, 2022.
She fell asleep and was woken up by another passenger at the end of the Northern Line at High Barnet station. After getting off the train, she noticed it was returning back the same way and stepped backwards to get back on. But she fell through the gap onto the tracks.
Nobody heard her desperate cries for help and she was run over and crushed by two trains. By the time she was rescued and taken to hospital, she had to have her limbs amputated.
The PR executive, who now uses two prosthetic limbs including a bionic arm, has launched a legal battle against London Underground Ltd (LUL), part of Transport for London (TfL), and is seeking £25million in compensation.
However, in defence documents submitted to the High Court, TfL denies liability, arguing Ms De Lagarde’s injuries were the result of her own negligence.
The public transport network says she, ‘placed herself in a position of danger’ because she was ‘negligent’ in how she got off the train.
Ms de Lagarde was on the tracks for 15 minutes before the alarm was raised. Speaking previously, she said: ‘Twenty-two tonnes of steel crushed my limbs, and, if that wasn’t bad enough, I remained on the tracks undetected until the second train came into the station, crushing me for a second time.’
In defence documents submitted to the High Court by TfL’s legal team and seen by the London Standard, TfL suggest ‘the incident was caused or contributed to by the claimant’s negligence’.
According to the TfL defence: ‘The claimant took a few steps forward on to the platform and then took a few steps backwards, before the rear of her body struck the rear side of the door of the train she had exited from.
‘The claimant continued to move backwards and, approximately seven seconds after exiting the train, she fell into the gap between carriages five and six of the train.’
Around five minutes later, the train driver walked back through the train to get to the driver’s cab to start his return journey southbound.
He noticed Ms de Lagarde’s brown leather bag wedged between the train and the platform, which he later handed to lost property. But he didn’t investigate further.
TfL’s defence said the driver ‘did not see or hear the claimant at that point and did not look into the gap, having no reason to do so’.
She called out for help, but no one came and the train left the platform, bringing her right arm with it.
She managed to reach her phone but her face was so badly injured the face ID didn’t work and it was too wet from the rain for the touchscreen to function, so she again tried to shout for help.
But again, no one came. And then a second train arrived, running over her right leg.
On Wednesday June 25, Ms de Lagarde attended the first High Court hearing in her case against London Underground Limited, which is part of Transport for London before Judge Master Roger Eastman.
The judge indicated that an eight-day trial would be listed at the High Court for early 2027.
Standing outside the Royal Courts of Justice in central London, she said: ‘I was run over and crushed by not one, but two London underground trains on the Northern Line.
‘Miraculously, I survived, but it cost me dearly: the first train took my arm, and the second train took my leg. That night I also lost my mobility, my independence, my dignity and above all my ability to hug my two young children with both arms.
‘Today, I stand before you not just as a survivor, but as a voice for change.’
TfL say that the driver of the second train did not see Ms de Lagarde lying on the track, despite the train’s headlights being on.
However, TfL said their purpose was ‘not to illuminate the tracks or the platform’ but to make the train visible to workers on the track.
Ms de Lagarde was on the tracks for 15 minutes before the alarm was raised and London Fire Brigade and London’s Air Ambulance medics rushed to the scene.
Three air ambulance medics helped save her life, with Dr Benjamin Marriage and paramedics Chris Doyle and Kevin Cuddon receiving a national bravery award.
Mr Cuddon said: ‘Sarah was trapped in a very awkward position so I crawled under the train to help the London Fire Brigade get her out.
‘Together we had to carry her about 30m under the train and put her on a device to lift her up to the platform.
‘She was really quiet, pale and had lost some blood.’
Ms de Lagarde had stepped onto an ‘accessibility hump’, a slope of a ramp that is designed to make it easier for wheelchair users to board trains.
An investigation by TfL found that the ramp was ‘in principle compliant’ with TfL’s standards and that ‘passengers stepping onto the base of the platform ramp is considered a sub-optimal arrangement’ but was nevertheless
Ms de Lagarde says ‘remained conscious and continued to cry out for help’.
Her claim states: ‘She was left lying partially across the first rail of the track, closest to the station platform.
‘The claimant attempted to manoeuvre her right foot and leg across the first rail in order to retrieve her mobile telephone. She cried out for help, but nobody came to her assistance.’
She was unable to move into a recess space in the platform wall as it was blocked by a steel frame and ‘excess ballast’, it is claimed.
It is disputed by TfL that there are different safety procedures for trains departing from a terminus station, as opposed to a station elsewhere on the line.
‘The same checks are required on dispatching a train from a terminus station and a non-terminus station,’ TfL said.
Ms de Lagarde was airlifted to the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel where she underwent surgery before being transferred to the Amputee Rehabilitation Unit in Lambeth on October 20.
She was discharged home on December 1, 2022. Ms de Lagarde receives ongoing care at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in Stanmore.
Representing Ms de Lagarde, Leigh Day partner Thomas Jervis said: ‘Like millions of other Londoners, Sarah de Lagarde was just trying to get home from work when she was hit by two tube trains at High Barnet station.
‘Transport for London is refusing to accept liability and positively blames Sarah for what happened.
‘This case is incredibly important and may have a profound impact on how London’s transport network is operated in the future.’
A TfL spokesperson said: ‘We are responding to a legal claim brought by Sarah de Lagarde.
‘It is not appropriate to discuss details of our defence while this case is ongoing.
‘Our thoughts continue to be with Sarah and her family following this terrible incident, and we will continue to make every possible effort to learn from any incident on the Tube network.
‘Safety is our top priority and we will always place it at the forefront of our thinking.’
