Train station staff alerted to ‘unwell man’ that was actually just a statue
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Get Specsavers on the phone, because I've got the idea for their next advert. At a train station in Surrey, staff were alerted to an 'unwell man' on the platform which was actually just a statue.
It's one of those moments that gives you hope for humanity, only it didn't actually help anyone.
In fact, it probably just caused a bit more work for the people who were alerted to the 'man' in the first place.
Still, it's the thought that counts.
The situation actually unfolded in 2018, but it resurfaced this week when the woman involved, Emma Obank, shared it to celebrate the anniversary of the funny but heartwarming moment.
Five years ago, Emma was on a train passing through Woking, Surrey. From her position, she spotted what she thought was a man sitting on a bench covered in snow - a sight which would, hopefully, cause concern for anyone who came across it.
She wasn't getting off at Woking, but Emma was determined to make sure the man was okay by contacting South Western Railway on Twitter to ask them to check on him.
"Hi, I've just been on the train passing through Woking," Emma wrote in the tweet. "It looked like there was a man very unwell on Platform one on a bench. Can station staff check he's ok?"
The man in question wore a black waistcoat over a green shirt - not exactly the best attire for a cold, snowy day - and the fact he was covered in snow made it look like he'd been there for some time.
Well, he had. But not because he was a human who'd been frozen by the snow.
The train company quickly responded to reassure Emma that there was nothing to worry about, because the man was a 'permanent fixture on the station'.
He didn't just like to hang out there - as the company explained: "That's ok Emma... he is one of a series of sculptures in the town."
Cue the 'should've gone to Specsavers'.
"Oh thank god!," Emma responded. "It was covered in snow so I thought someone had frozen to death!"
It's an unfortunate blunder, but luckily she was able to see the funny side as she shared the exchange on Twitter and brought it back into the spotlight this week.
"Five years since this mad moment," she wrote. "It never gets old."
Her post was met with delight from other Twitter users who described Emma as 'cute' for her concern, with one writing: "This is so funny but also genuinely very sweet. I'm glad you checked and I’m glad this was the outcome."
Though Emma was wrong on this occasion, at least she was wrong for a very wholesome reason.
