'It was chaos': Violent fight on board CTrain forces passengers into Calgary LRT tunnel
A CTrain was forced to stop in the middle of a tunnel in downtown Calgary following an assault Tuesday night.
At about 11 p.m., Calgary police were called to 36 Avenue and Burnsland Road S.E.
Officials told CTV News they were called to the CTrain for reports of a stabbing after it left the Erlton-Stampede station.
The train car was in a tunnel at the time of the incident, and officers had to run down the tunnel to respond.
"Everyone started jumping out of the car, and we saw cops with huge rifles," said one witness.
"It was really scary."
Police say the initial calls to 911 reported multiple stabbings.
"It sounded like what we had was an active assailant that was with multiple victims," said Calgary Police Service Supt. Cliff O’Brien
"The officers put aside their own safety to rush into a dark tunnel to try to locate this individual on a train where there's lots of community members. It's not ideal."
When police arrived, they found that no one had been stabbed, but one man sustained minor injuries, and a 26-year-old man was arrested a short time later. It's unknown if the pair knew each other.
"A passenger activated the emergency stop, causing the train to come to a stop inside the tunnel between Victoria Park and City Hall stations," police said in a release.
As a result, approximately 100 passengers needed to get off the train and walk about 1.5 kilometres to exit the tunnel.
Witnesses say the train cars were completely full following a concert at the Saddledome.
"We were cruising down the train when suddenly someone said, 'This guy's got a knife,' and everyone started pushing back and forth, and we were essentially crammed into the very back," said Harlod Mejia, who was in the first train car at the time of the incident.
"It was chaos. Eventually, a bunch of amazing guys pinned him down, and I think he still had a knife, so just the fact that he had a knife and they were brave enough to do that, we appreciate them."
Southbound trains were stopped to ensure the safety of the passengers walking in the tunnel.
"Everybody started pushing back, trying to get out of the way, and I thought someone had just thrown up on the train, so I tapped this one girl on the back to ask her what had happened, and she said, 'Someone just got stabbed. Someone has a knife on the train', said Lacey Rasmussen.
"We all just stood there for a few minutes because the guy had been tackled to the ground and the knife had been pulled away from him, but then the announcer came on to tell us that we had to evacuate the train."
Officials are advising anyone who witnessed the incident to consider contacting the Calgary Police Service's victim assistance support team by calling 403-428-8398.
The investigation is ongoing and anyone with additional information who has not already spoken with police is encouraged to contact them by calling 403-266-1234.
Tips can also be submitted anonymously to Crime Stoppers through any of the following methods:
TALK: 1-800-222-8477
TYPE: www.calgarycrimestoppers.org
APP: P3 Tips
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Canadians are eyeing moves to these cities for more affordable housing
Faced with elevated housing prices, half of Canadians in the country's largest cities are considering moving to places with more affordable housing.
Poilievre says Canadians 'fleeing' to Nicaragua, Liberals say it shows he 'doesn't have a clue'
Liberal parliamentarians are criticizing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre over a new video in which he promotes the idea that some Canadians are 'fleeing' Canada to live in Nicaragua because they can't afford a house in this country.
With DNA break, police ID victim in decades-old Newfoundland case
A skull was found along a backroad near St. John's more than 20 years ago. Now, police have finally identified the victim of the homicide.
'Do not drive': Nissan warns Canadian drivers of explosion risk impacting 48,000 vehicles
Car manufacturer Nissan has issued a do-not-drive warning for some older vehicles equipped with Takata airbag inflators, due to the risk of explosion during a crash.
Infant dies in ATV crash, N.S. RCMP says alcohol may be a factor
An infant has died and three others, including another child, were taken to hospital following an ATV crash in Forties, N.S., on Monday.
Tessa Virtue reveals she's expecting her first child. Here's what Canadians had to say
Canadian figure-skating icon Tessa Virtue is expecting her first child, she revealed via social media Tuesday.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's housing plan defeated in House of Commons
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's housing bill has been defeated in the House of Commons with the Liberals, New Democrats and Bloc Quebecois voting against the legislation.
B.C. man to be extradited to U.S. on charges of sexually assaulting stepdaughter
A British Columbia man will be extradited to the United States, where he faces a possible life sentence if convicted of charges that he repeatedly sexually assaulted his stepdaughter, after losing his appeal of the extradition order Tuesday.
Trudeau must more publicly support ICC decisions amid Israel-Hamas war: ex-ministers
A group of prominent former politicians and current academics is asking Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to change his tone on the possibility of arrest warrants for senior Israeli leaders.