Netizens are bursting with excitement and admiration following a heroic act portrayed by a passerby, which saved the life of a man in a wheelchair.
The incident reportedly took place at about 1:30 p.m. at Union Square. The good samaritan saved the man from getting crushed by a subway train after mysteriously falling off his wheelchair directly into the subway tracks.
Good Samaritan helping a man stuck on the rail track | Photo: Twitter / SubwayCreatures
A clip of the incident first surfaced on Twitter. The tweet read: “This afternoon in Union Square, a man in a wheelchair somehow ended up on the subway tracks. Luckily, a good Samaritan jumped down and rescued the man about 10s before the train came into the station.”
The footage showed the man struggling aimlessly to pick himself up, with his wheelchair lying beside him. The rescuer arrived at the scene in a run, jumped into the subway track, and lifted the wheelchair onto the Union Square platform.
This afternoon in Union Square a man in a wheelchair somehow ended up on the subway tracks. Luckily, a Good Samaritan jumped down and rescued the man about 10s before the train came into the station. Huge shoutout to whoever the guy is who jumped down to help! #subwaycreatures pic.twitter.com/Uhx2drg2NH
— Rick (@SubwayCreatures) August 4, 2021
With the help of other passersby, the rescuer helped the man onto the platform before climbing up as well. Throughout the rescue, an automated voice could be heard in the background warning passengers to stay off the tracks as a train was approaching.
Everyone was simply thankful the rescue turned out successful, with no casualty in tow.
@NYCMayor @NYCMayorsOffice @nycpa
Let’s find out who this Good Samaritan is!
— Elizabeth S. (@ElizabethStehle) August 4, 2021
Sure enough, a train barreled towards them seconds later, and the crowd was all too glad that a potential tragedy was averted.
The poster gave a shout-out to the rescuer, who had his mask on throughout the process, and was yet to be identified by the police. Other Twitter users joined in singing odes to the good Samaritan, acknowledging his selfless service. One wrote:
“It didn’t matter if it was 10s or 5m, that man did [not] know for sure if he’d survive rescuing the man. He did it anyway. Please let him be blessed in his life, equal to the blessing he’s given.”
Good Samaritan did all this while managing to keep his mask on.
— GABBY (@jmariebrooklyn) August 5, 2021
Some netizens seized the opportunity to condemn the police department for not allocating enough of their budget to helping people.
One Twitter user called out the person who filmed the video, Lauren Mennen of WCBS, for standing by without trying to help. Another commended the heroic stranger for keeping his mask on throughout the rescue process.
Is there some kind of way to make the subway safer for people in wheelchairs?
— Coffeebum Mombod 🌈🌈🌈🌈 (@AndBrazen) August 5, 2021
Others had mixed feelings about the operation, criticizing the rescuer for grabbing the wheelchair first instead of the endangered man while commending his bravery.
Overall, everyone was simply thankful the rescue turned out successful, with no casualty in tow, thanks to the selfless effort of a good Samaritan who mysteriously remains anonymous.