Chivalry is not dead!

This is the sort of thing that makes people reluctant to help others.

Man fined for assisting old lady

23 October 2007

BRUSSELS – A man who assisted an elderly woman on Monday after train doors closed on her was "thanked" by the conductor with a 60-euro fine.

"I apparently could have caused a delay and that is not permitted," Daniël Dewulf from Ostend told newspaper Het Laatste Nieuws.

Dewulf managed to get on the Bruges-bound train just before the conductor's whistle. "Then I noticed that an elderly woman had tried to get on after me. The doors had closed on her, trapping her. In order to prevent a tragedy I pushed the door open and helped her get in. She thanked me profusely."

The conductor was less enthusiastic. "He gave me a fine because my actions increased the chance of a delay," Dewulf explained. "The train arrived right on time in Bruges in any event. The conductor did not see my point that I may have saved the woman's life as a mitigating circumstance. Result: 60-euro fine."

The Belgian Railways has since admitted that Dewulf should not be blamed and that he did help to prevent a worse accident. He will not have to pay the fine in the end. "We also offer our apologies. We should have in fact fined the woman in question for boarding the train after the whistle."

[Copyright Expatica News 2007]

 

@ BILLMCC66

Know what you mean. But these type of incidents are normally thrown out of court...which I suspect the Railway realised per your extract: "Belgian Railways has since admitted that Dewulf should not be blamed and that he did help to prevent a worse accident. He will not have to pay the fine in the end. We also offer our apologies."

As for their comments about the lady: "We should have in fact fined the woman in question for boarding the train after the whistle"....perhaps she was just deaf(?!)LOL

 

the problem is it makes people think twice before stepping in to help and by then it could be too late.

 

Bill, your point is well taken. But then as many posters here have already pointed out, actions are often automatic by those who have it inbuilt with their character/make up. The public often scorns these type of fine incidents when done with good intent and the safety of others.

I believe that generally the good side of human nature will not be thwarted by such problems.

 

How ridiculous, she should in fact be the one to fine the railways, to get technical. Thats heartless

 

I’ve had a lightweight “Beach tent”, do me good service for the last 10+ years (mine – small size - fits 4 people comfortably). Excellent for outdoors, particularly if like me, you enjoy a full day at the beach for swim/surf. Regardless of how hot it get, it's deliciously cool in that tent.

Tent explodes open within seconds, anchored by sand filling its “pockets”. Packing it up is easy, (doing it solo - approx. 1 minute), because once folded like a windsurfer sail, and bent top down, it automatically folds itself flat for storing into its light carrying case that fits snugly over the shoulder with my beach bag (also stuffed with picnic food/drinks/etc). Friends love it too, and we often have our little “beach picnic parties” in it.

Well, with such great weather and at the end of an enjoyable time at the beach, I had problems folding it for the first time ever!:confused Trying to fold it, it would wrap around and swallow up my legs. Another attempt and it enfolded me within it so I almost disappeared (given my size, that’s not all that surprising). It seemed to have taken on a life of its own as I struggled to get it right…when my companion found he was useless helping me through laughing, he gave up, leaving me to struggle on.

Finally, a laughing gentleman comes up, offering to help. Then the two of us became entangled, struggling out from within the folds of this tent gone fiendishly mad, (by now my friend was laughing uncontrollably). Each attempt of getting it reasonably flat, if not held right, the tent would suddenly explode open. To make matters worst, a wind started up and we struggled to avoid “sailing off into the sunset” with it.

Frustrated, I examined it and found the front frame was warped which obviously was the problem, (age, happens eventually). After half an hour (by now providing an amusement for other beach bathers watching our antics), the gentleman, hot, sweaty, sandy, embarrassed and now laughing himself at the dilemma, politely excused himself as he felt he couldn’t assist further.<sigh!>

Finally by using arms, legs in all directions to hold it together along with sheer determination, I finally forced and held it into a flat enough shape to quickly jam into its bag and zipped it up before it escaped!

I scowled at my companion while he drove me home. Some chivalry, hmmmph! He was still laughing, and finally had me laughing too.LOL

A family has happily accepted this tent for their kids who love it, with a warning of no guarantee it can be folded away. Yes, I am going to buy a new one…can’t do without it with our hot weather.

 

Beware the attack of the living tent!....


I had a pretty much similar thing with one of those dome shaped 'Igloo' tents. Struts got a bit bent up with, (maybe careless) use. Tried taking it down on a very blustery day in a bush campsite. It end up stuck in a tree and ripped up. (One of those, D'oh' moments!). That's when I realised it made a better parachute than a tent.rolleyes

'Cause my companion had to be taking photos of me climbing up a tree like an ape, trying to get a mangled tent out of the tree. Bah, another thing, I won't live down any time soon.

 

LOLNot sure I would try climbing a tree after it...last time I climbed a tree was to rescue my cat (kitten at the time), branch broke and I fell down ending with 3 broken ribsrolleyes

Those beach tents are great...small and compact when packed in shoulder bag (@50cm - 19 inches in circumference and 4cm - 1 and half inches wide)

Would have loved to have seen you up a tree trying to rescue that tent...kodak moment(?!)LOL