It's been a week of ups and downs for BART: while they made it through their second weekend of the Transbay Tube closure with nary a hitch, travel this week has been marred by incidents involving death and selfies.
Oakland's 12th Street Station was closed at 9:30 Tuesday night after, says BART spokesperson Denisse Gonzalez, reports were called in of a person under a train at Platform 2. The person, described only as "male," was pronounced dead at the scene.
According to Gonzalez, neither BART police nor the Alameda County Coroner's office believe that foul play was a factor. The station reopened at 10 p.m., though Platform 2 at both 12th and 19th Street stations remained closed, slowing travel for those heading from West Oakland toward Fremont.
BART travel was stalled Monday night as well, but under less somber circumstances: in this case, a man reportedly taking a selfie on the Oakland tracks delayed trains for about 30 minutes.
The Contra Costa Times reports that at 9:30 p.m. on Labor Day, BART police "received a report from a family member of a man who allegedly posted a picture of himself lying on BART tracks."
The family member was "concerned that the man might still be in danger." Out of an abundance of caution, BART halted all train activity while officials searched for the selfie-shooting photographer.
BART police were eventually "able to trace the man's cell phone, which showed that he was no longer within the BART system," the CC Times reports.
Though BART resumed service at 10 p.m., this matter is far from over, BART police Lieutenant Michael Hayes says.
"At this point," Hayes says, "if we locate him, we will pursue criminal prosecution for interfering with railroad activity."
And that's why you take your selfies inside the station or the train, people, not on the tracks.
If someone you know exhibits warning signs of suicide: do not leave the person alone; remove any firearms, alcohol, drugs or sharp objects that could be used in a suicide attempt; and call the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255) or take the person to an emergency room or seek help from a medical or mental health professional.