A woman says she was almost killed by panes of glass which came crashing down from the roof of Whitley Bay Metro Station.
Angelika Taic feels lucky to be alive after several panes of glass fell from above and smashed just inches away from where she was standing. The 38-year-old had set up her Sustenance Society bakery stand in the station with her partner before the drama unfolded as a result of Storm Otto at around 8.16am on February 17.
Recounting her brush with death, Angelika said: "There was a gust of wind, I looked up and my mind went blank.
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"I remember hearing metal bending, almost like a car crash sort of noise. Then when I got to the door of the ticket office I was screaming. Two panes of glass fell down with the metal supports in between them.
"The lady I had been serving in front of me kept saying 'You're not hurt!' 'you're not hurt!'.
"I am still dealing with it. I thought I was dead and in the afterlife.
"It took days and days to sink in how lucky I was. My coat and shoes were full of glass, it was on me, it just didn't cut me which in itself is absolutely incredible.
"I reviewed the CCTV and it shows that I look up, something falls onto my right so I automatically moved to the left and away. As I moved away a pane of glass fell exactly where I was standing.
"In the weeks afterwards I spoke to other people who were on the platform, they recollected a child in a pram nearly getting hit by debris. A lot of people were affected by this."
Storm Otto brought winds of up to 70mph to the North East which wreaked havoc and caused major disruption to public transport.
The storm damaged the glass canopy tiles on the roof of the partially exposed Grade II listed station, which led to it being closed for more than a month. Though the canopy has not yet been replaced - it is set to be fully refurbished at a cost of £5.3m this summer.
Angelika says her business was compensated for damaged produce, but she has demanded answers in regards to the handling of the incident by Tyne and Wear Metro owners Nexus.
Angelika conducted her own survey to ask residents and business owners their opinions on the closure, the condition of the station and how Nexus handled the incident.
Almost 200 people responded, with many lamenting the loss not convenient travel to and from work. The maintenance of the station was another serious cause for concern.
Customer services director at Nexus, Huw Lewis, said: “The listed station building is more than 100 years old and needs continual care and maintenance but we have absolutely not neglected it. Since a large-scale refurbishment completed in 2008 we have carried out regular routine maintenance to the canopy structure, repointing, damp proofing and regular vegetation clearance and jet-washing as well as the replacement of aged staircases.
“Our next step will see Nexus invest £5.3 million starting this summer to replace the station’s glass canopy completely, restoring the panels over the track and building in walkways for the first time to allow future inspection and maintenance. We sought planning permission for this last year and began a hunt for an expert contractor to carry out what will be an extensive building project.
“I am sincerely sorry for the amount of disruption that was caused by the recent five-week closure of the station.
“The safety of our customers is our first priority and we closed the station immediately and undertook at-height inspections of the canopy to determine the cause of the damage, before bringing in specialist contractors to install tension netting below the glass panes. The station could only be reopened once that work was completed.
“Thankfully nobody was injured by this incident but I would like to stress that we are taking this very seriously and understand the concerns raised. One of our managers went to see the people from the bakery the day after the storm to make sure everyone at the pop-up stall they had set up in the station at the time was okay, and we kept in touch and compensated them.
“As soon as the station was closed this was communicated to the businesses in Whitley Bay Metro station and more widely to our customers via our website, the local media and our own social media channels, including detailed video updates. We also provided Metro customers with travel on local buses to alternative stations throughout the closure.
“We will continue to keep customers and local businesses informed and will share further details of the full restoration project soon."
Whitley Bay councillor John O'Shea said: "The results of the survey did show how the Metro system is cherished by the residents of Whitley Bay. The recent closure has been inconvenient for the many people who use it.
"Residents will be looking forward to the new Metros coming later. The future of the Metro will be a good one."
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