Jamillah Blakely said it felt like an episode of the Twilight Zone.
The Lakewood woman fell asleep on the Sounder train from Kent to Lakewood Thursday. When she woke up, she was trapped on the train.
“I was panicking,” said Blakely. “You wake up on the train, no one’s there, you’re by yourself.”
Her train car had been locked and stored for the night about a mile from the Lakewood station where she meant to get off.
Blakely figured someone would have woken her up at the end of the line. According to a Sound Transit spokesperson, that's what should have happened.
The contractor responsible for making sure no one is left on train cars did not check the car Blakely was on, spokesperson Scott Thompson said.
“Sound Transit regrets this mistake and the great inconvenience this created for Ms. Blakely,” said Thompson.
Sound Transit said it is working with the contractor to ensure the incident is not repeated. Once Blakely realized she could not get off the train, she called 911.
She credits the dispatchers for helping her find an emergency exit.
“Thank you,” said Blakely. “Because they calmed me down, they talked me through it.”
Since Blakely doesn’t have a vehicle, she will need to take the train again but she’ll change one thing.
“I would never, ever go to sleep on a train again,” said Blakely.
