(SHIZ) — Passengers caught in last Thursday’s portal incident at the OzRail Purple Line platform in Shiz are now sharing what they experienced inside the mysterious gateway.
Several riders say the moment the portal opened, the air on the platform became strangely quiet before a powerful pulling sensation swept through the crowd.
Many described the portal itself as a spinning tunnel of violet light hovering just above the tracks.
University student Miri Talwick says the experience lasted only seconds but felt much longer.
“It was like falling sideways through a glowing whirlpool,” Talwick said. “I remember seeing the platform disappear behind me and then suddenly I was standing in the middle of a pumpkin field.”
She described the surprise of Munchkin farmers nearby who witnessed her sudden appearance and how they immediately ran to offer help.
Another passenger, traveling merchant Dovren Bale, says he felt weightless as he moved through the portal.
“It felt like the wind picked me up and spun me around,” Bale said. “There were flashes of color everywhere, like lightning made of purple glass.”
Several passengers reported hearing a deep humming sound as they passed through the vortex. Some also say they briefly saw shapes or reflections of other places across Oz while traveling through the gateway. One rider says he caught a glimpse of Emerald City’s towers before the portal deposited him along a rural road near Gillikin Country. Most say the trip ended as suddenly as it began.
Teacher Elna Rook described landing in a wheat field in Winkie Country.
“One second I was waiting for my train,” Rook said. “The next second I was standing in tall grass with birds flying everywhere.”
Investigators say the portal remained open for less than two minutes before collapsing. It has been pulsing randomly in the days since. Professors from the Royal Academy of Oz were able to stabilize it and say it no longer poses a threat.
Despite the chaotic experience, OzRail officials say no passengers reported any injuries.
Quadling Yard investigators are continuing to interview the affected riders in hopes that their descriptions will help determine how the portal formed.
Scholars from the Royal Academy of Oz Arcane Sciences Department say the firsthand accounts could reveal clues about the magical forces involved and who may have created the portal. A motive remains a mystery.
Professor Belmira Thatch says the descriptions of spinning light and humming energy match patterns sometimes associated with unstable ley-line intersections.
“For now, the portal appears dormant,” Thatch said. “But understanding what passengers experienced inside it may help us prevent another event like this.”
Meanwhile, OzRail officials say displaced passengers are continuing to arrive back in Shiz as recovery trains and transport teams bring them home.
