Work has started on taking down the Rotterdam metro that made international headlines after overrunning the tracks and balancing on a sculpture of a whale’s tail.

Spijkenisse makes international headlines

The metro made headlines on Monday, as photos of it teetering 10 metres in the air on the tip of the tail of a whale circulated the internet. The sculpture seems to have remained intact, with the artist Maarten Strijs calling the photos of the incident “spectacular.”

 Source: Euronews, No Comment TV

Luckily the metro was empty, with only the driver inside - who managed to escape unharmed. The incident took place a little after midnight on Monday morning, and it’s still unclear what exactly happened. 

Rotterdam metro to be saved from the whale

On Tuesday began the arduous process of retrieving the metro carriage. Slowly, the carriage will be lifted by a crane, with a spokesperson for the security region telling local news “We will take our time, as this must be done very carefully.” 

With the unusual incident creating such a stir, it’s unsurprising that so many have flocked to the town of Spijkenisse, on the outskirts of Rotterdam, to catch a glimpse of the metro before it’s taken down. However, the local mayor Foort van Oosten has asked people not to visit the site, instead encouraging people to watch the process via a live stream.