Off-Duty New York Firefighter Rescues Man Who Fell on Subway Tracks

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While firefighters will always show up when you call, sometimes they also just happen to be there when you need them.

Firefighter Gene O'Donnell from Squad 18 was riding the E subway line home at around 11 p.m. on Nov. 23, 2011, when the train he was riding skipped his stop. So he exited the train at the Roosevelt Ave./Jackson Heights train station in Queens and switched platforms. 

Moments later he heard a loud thump and people screaming down the platform. He then saw straphangers pointing towards the track bed, where an unconscious victim lay, face-down, on the tracks. 

Without hesitating, Firefighter O'Donnell jumped down to help. The man, who was in his 40s or 50s and weighed close to 200 lbs., was bleeding from the back of his head and his mouth. 

The firefighter yelled to the train service supervisor to call an ambulance. He then got under the victim's shoulder and lifted him to the platform with the help of several Good Samaritans – including one man who was on his way home from the airport.  Just moments later, a train pulled into the station. 

Firefighter O'Donnell stayed with the victim, and tried not to move him in case he suffered serious injuries, until EMS arrived.  FDNY EMTs Joanna Raczkowska and Kyle Logiudice then transferred the man to Elmhurst Hospital in stable condition.

"It was someone who needed help and I was at the right place at the right time," Firefighter O'Donnell said. "It was nice to see other New Yorkers jumped in to help as well."

Republished with permission of the New York City Fire Department. View original article here.



Author:Emily Rahimi - PIO - FDNY