Posted on 01/04/2007 3:25:02 PM PST by Kitten Festival
Heroism: To leap in front of a 370-ton locomotive to save a stranger in a dank New York subway pit takes a kind of courage we'd all like to think we have but don't. Wesley Autrey showed it Tuesday and elevated us all.
The new year has begun on a high note from Harlem after Autrey, 50, a construction worker on his way to work with his two little daughters, headed into Manhattan's 137th Street-City College station.
Before he got through the turnstile, Autrey spotted a young man thrashing about in a seizure and called for help. But he didn't wait for it to come. He rushed to the side of 18-year-old Cameron Hollopeter, borrowing a pen from another rider and prying open the student's jaws to keep him from swallowing his tongue.
But that was only Autrey's first rescue. As Hollopeter got up, he tumbled onto the subway tracks. That's when Autrey showed what he was really made of. Handing off his girls to another rider, he leapt into the rat-infested pit to rescue the still-flailing teen.
The headlights of an oncoming subway train bore down on them, but there was no time to escape. Facing the monster head on, Autrey dived into icy water under the front of the thundering train, bear-hugging Hollopeter in hope that their best chance lay in a few inches of space beneath the train as at least two cars rumbled over them. Miraculously, they survived.
Where do people like this come from, such angels among us? Although little is known of Autrey beyond the fact of his stupendous rescue, two details stand out.
(Excerpt) Read more at investors.com ...
You know, I should have said, "buy that man a car" - but I understand they're somewhat of a burden when you live in NYC and have to buy or rent a garage for them.
I hope they buy him the whole package - car, garage, chauffeur, insurance, registration - for life.
He's a Navy vet? I missed that, somehow. I should have known! Like the Ultimate Admiral, he was "strong to save." Woo hoo.
This made the rescue even more remarkable, since Mr. Autrey had to be sure no contact was made (by either himself, or the guy he was rescuing) with that third rail throughout the ordeal as it unfolded.
No matter how craven and vile people are, we have this shining example of respect for life that surpasses the evil among us.
"Excuse me, got carried away there."
No you didn't. Your words and sentiment were totally apropos.
I love the fact that Investors Business Daily connected this man's stunning heroism with his Christian upbringing and military training.
"Said to be a Navy veteran from Alabama, Autrey's selfless instincts in the face of impending disaster evoke those we usually hear about on the battlefield."
Bring back the draft.
There may not be this level of courage and sacrifice in every young American, but it certainly helps if they are in the company of such heroes.
sp
Yes, definitely a driver and limo. That would be wonderful - and to take the little girls to school, too - if it wouldn't cause problems with the other kids.
They thought for 20 minutes that their father had been killed by the train. That's going to take a while to get over at their ages - once it hits them again, after all this whirlwind.
P.S. I think he's going to be on Letterman tonight.
Wesley Autrey.. God Bless!
Look at Wesley Autrey's blue cap, you can see smears caused from the nearness of the train as it passed over
Five cars rolled overhead before the train stopped, the cars passing inches from his head, smudging his blue knit cap with grease. Mr. Autrey heard onlookers screams. Were O.K. down here, he yelled, but Ive got two daughters up there. Let them know their fathers O.K. He heard cries of wonder, and applause. http://suitablyflip.blogs.com/suitably_flip/2007/01/wesley_autrey_n.html
That's a wives tale, then? What should one do?
The argument against forcing open the airway during the seizure, outside of it's not being always necessary, is you can break teeth or even bones. A friend just bit right through the pencil put in her mouth!
If you're confronted with a big old seizure,
In any event,
We still don't know if it was epilepsy or not. In any case, Autrey did what he thought was right.
Oh yeah. But what I wrote is for seizures generally. And I'm not criticizing Autry. I just didn't want that notion to persist. It's dangerous.
Thanks!
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