HAUNTED BY TRACK DEATH
Ex-Tube boss, 50, saved by radio presenter Iain Lee live on air reveals body discovery sparked suicide attempt
Chris, 50, called talkRADIO last month while slumped in a doorway in Plymouth after taking an overdose
A FORMER Tube boss saved by presenter Iain Lee on his radio show has revealed how he was driven to suicide after seeing a dead body on the tracks.
Chris, 50, called talkRADIO while slumped in a doorway in Plymouth after taking an overdose last month.
5
Host Iain, who last year appeared on I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here, kept him talking for 30 minutes during the live radio show until an ambulance arrived.
But ex-Tube worker Chris, who suffers from PTSD, revealed in a follow-up call last night how he is still battling his demons since seeing a man die on the tracks.
On The Late Night Alternative Show, Chris told the host he had attempted to take his own life three times since moving to Cornwall three years ago.
He believes he would have been sectioned if he was still living in London but claims Cornwall Council doesn't have the resources to look after him.
5
Chris said: "To be honest I know I need help but Cornwall Council is so severely stretched for cash that while ordinarily in London you are committed or sectioned… in Cornwall they send you home.
"They send their little treatment team round for three days and you are left alone to fight your demons.
“And I am fighting my demons and I can't see any way out of that other than suicide. I am just going to be a drain on society, I am going to be a drain on everybody.”
He opened up about the tragedy in London that caused his mental health breakdown as he revealed he is now back home in Cornwall with his carer.
5
5
He said: "I was witness to a person under a train. That person was around mid 20s or early 30s – which is the age of my eldest son.
“I saw that person on the track lying in front of the train completely lifeless. That was the first time I had ever been involved in anything like that.
"It had such a detrimental affect on me that I just started drinking heavily. I was drinking a bottle of vodka a day.”
He was eventually dismissed from London Underground and moved from the capital after his marriage broke down.
Iain told him: "Don’t die. Take care brother. Hang in there.”
5
Chris made the original phonecall on December 19 during a slot about mental health.
He told Iain he didn't want to leave any longer and drifted in and out of consciousness leaving the presenter - and his listeners - fearing for the worst.
Iain, who fronts a show called Late Night Alternative between 10pm and 1am, broke down in tears when he was told emergency services had reached the suicidal man just in time.
He tweeted followers after the incident on Wednesday night: "F**k, that was intense and upsetting."
The host was praised for his actions after managing to get a location and description of Chris to pass to a police officer.
Chris was taken to Derriford Hospital in Plymouth where he was incubated for two days and it was "touch and go" whether he would survive.
MOST READ IN NEWS
During the worrying call, host Iain told him: "Tell you what, Chris - I don't want you to die tonight. I need to know what street you're on.
"I want you to get through tonight and chat to me tomorrow, when you haven't got a load of drugs in you.
"I don't want you to die tonight because I love you. I love you, brother. I love you.
"Someone's going to come and help you."
If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this article, please call the Samaritans on (free) 116123
Topics