TARRYTOWN, N.Y. (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) – Metro-North workers rescued a 3-year-old boy with autism who ended up on the tracks in Westchester and climbed onto the electrified third rail.
The five workers were honored Monday for the daring rescue on the afternoon of April 6.
The boy, who is nonverbal, apparently fell off a wall and ended up on the tracks north of Tarrytown after wandering away from his family.
At one point, he crawled up onto the deadly third rail--saved only by the wooden safety plank.
Southbound engineer William Kennedy spotted the toddler and got on the radio as he passed northbound engineer Shawn Loughran, who stopped the train.
“Emergency, emergency, emergency,” Kennedy said over the radio. “Metro-North 737 Hudson. We need you to kill the rail, we’ve got a toddler here on the tracks.”
“This toddler’s running on the third rail,” he said.
Once the train came to a stop, assistant conductor Marcus Higgins sprinted down the tracks and picked up the child, video shows.
Signal maintainers Max Chong and Christopher Fraina found the boy's mother and sister distraught and crying at a nearby street corner after he vanished.
The unharmed boy was reunited with his family at the Tarrytown Station.
Metro-North President Catherine Rinaldi said the workers are “true Metro-North superheroes” who saved a life.
“These fine Metro-North team members embodied the qualities we want our employees to exhibit while on duty,” Rinaldi said as the men were awarded commendations on Monday.
“We salute all that they did to keep this child safe, and I heartily thank them for their dedication to the region, their dedication to their customers and the people that we serve,” she said.
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