50-year-old Manhattan Navy veteran and construction worker Wesley Autrey saved the life of 19-year-old Cameron Hollopeter in a New York subway on Tuesday. Hollopeter was having a siezure and fell from the platform onto the tracks below. With a train rapidly approaching, Autrey jumped down to assist while his two daughters looked on. Unable to lift Hollopeter back onto the platform, Autrey pushed Hollopeter down into a shallow trench between the tracks and lay on top of the seizuring teen while the train passed overtop.

"I didn't want the man's body to get run over, Autrey said. Plus, I was with my daughters and I didn't want them to see that."

"I was trying to pull him up, but his weight [was too much] plus he was fighting against me he didn't know who I was, Autrey told CBS station WCBS-TV.

Autrey said the man was still moving violently from the seizure, so he pulled him into the center of the tracks away from the high-voltage third rail and laid on top of him. "The only thing that popped up in my mind was, 'OK, well, go for the gutter,'" Autrey said. "So I dove in, I pinned him down and once the first car ran over us, my thing with him was to keep him still."

The subway trough between the rails, which is used for drainage, is typically about 12 inches deep but can be as shallow as 8 or as deep as 24, a New York City Transit spokesman said.

The train's operator saw someone on the tracks and put the emergency brakes on. Two cars of the train passed over the men with about 2 inches to spare, Autrey said before it came to a stop.

Autrey's daughters thought the train had killed their father and the teen, but were relieved to hear their father shout up from under the train that the two were fine.

Hollopeter, a student at the New York Film Academy, was taken to a hospital, where he was in stable condition with only minor injuries.

Hollopeter's stepmother, Rachel Hollopeter, said Autrey was "an angel."

You're a top notch guy, Wes. And I like your hat.

Margot_Dent

Los Angeles, CA

February 2004

JAN 04, 2007 04:02 PM

aw, i like seeing stories like these

cymagen

I'm lost

March 2006

JAN 04, 2007 04:06 PM

awesome

ThisIsWhoWeAre

Oakland, CA

July 2004

JAN 04, 2007 04:15 PM

Incredible! What a guy.

Thanks for sharing such a cool story.

FridgeMagnet

Chicago, IL

November 2004

JAN 04, 2007 04:20 PM

I think they have implants nowadays for that Hollo Peter condition.

And it's a very wonderful story and that guy rocks. But I mean, how many times in your life does "Hollopeter" come along?

Tez

SUICIDEGIRL

Australia

JAN 04, 2007 04:22 PM

My faith is restored in humans when I hear stories like this.

ThisIsWhoWeAre

Oakland, CA

July 2004

JAN 04, 2007 04:22 PM

FridgeMagnet said:
I think they have implants nowadays for that Hollo Peter condition.

I think that's what they call it if they remove the implant.

Dead_Ringer

I'm lost

September 2004

JAN 04, 2007 04:24 PM

The word "hero" gets bandied about a little recklessly these days, but this guy = fucking hero.

Max16Characters

Korea, Republic Of

March 2003

JAN 04, 2007 04:37 PM

Amazing! This guy is a real hero. We need more people and stories like this in the news.

_DictionaryGirl_

NEWSWIRE

San Diego, CA

JAN 04, 2007 04:39 PM

Awesome.

be_elzebe

China

May 2006

JAN 04, 2007 04:47 PM

That's crazy awesome.

Shazzy

Canada

August 2003

JAN 04, 2007 04:52 PM

wildswan

I'm lost

June 2006

JAN 04, 2007 04:53 PM

Fantastic!

Weso

Santa Cruz, CA

July 2002

JAN 04, 2007 05:03 PM

If only we could all care like that.

camalot

Kitchener, ON

April 2006

JAN 04, 2007 05:07 PM

Outstanding! If only we all had the abillity to ACT FAST like that. Most people just stand there going "whuh?"...myself included.

ardour

Canada

March 2006

JAN 04, 2007 05:18 PM

Yeah, I freeze up when dealing with an unexpected conversation...

Geisterfaust

Tempe, AZ

June 2006

JAN 04, 2007 05:24 PM

Tez said:
My faith is restored in humans when I hear stories like this.

Yes. Agreed.

Bazza

I'm lost

June 2004

JAN 04, 2007 05:30 PM

It is after 1.00am here in UK, and I just heard the news of this brave man's heroic action on the World Service of the BBC. Mr. Autrey sounded like a realy nice kind of guy. I am very pleased that his extraordinary bravery was matched by incredible good luck in the depth of that trench!!

Aha! The Mayor has rewarded him. Good :-)

Bazza.

Salome

SUICIDEGIRL

Illinois, USA

JAN 04, 2007 05:30 PM

Maybe I'm expecting too much of online media, but at least spell shit right!!

Hollopeter was having a siezure and fell from the platform onto the tracks below.

be_elzebe

China

May 2006

JAN 04, 2007 05:46 PM

Leave it to Salome to ruin everybody's feel good moment by pointing out a typo... heh

J24U

Danvers, MA

February 2006

JAN 04, 2007 05:48 PM

Little stories like this help to deal with all the bullshit going on in the world.

MrCrisp

I'm lost

August 2004

JAN 04, 2007 05:49 PM

i think what's more amazing than this man's heroics is that this took place in new york city.

joelovallo

New Paltz, NY

September 2004

JAN 04, 2007 05:53 PM

MrCrisp said:
i think what's more amazing than this man's heroics is that this took place in new york city.

Contrary to popular belief Manhattan and the outer lying boroughs are not war zones.

MrCrisp

I'm lost

August 2004

JAN 04, 2007 06:03 PM

joelovallo said:

MrCrisp said:
i think what's more amazing than this man's heroics is that this took place in new york city.

Contrary to popular belief Manhattan and the outer lying boroughs are not war zones.

when i lived there, the subway wasn't exactly the most sociable location. but yeah, what the fuck do i know?

i think the closest washingtonville's ever come to being a war zone is when weir's opens for business, so i wouldn't exactly say you're an expert on the matter.

Salome

SUICIDEGIRL

Illinois, USA

JAN 04, 2007 06:07 PM

be_elzebe said:
Leave it to Salome to ruin everybody's feel good moment by pointing out a typo... heh

Dude, I was a journalism major. One typo, one misspelled name, one factual error and I was flunked. You want to know why? Because one stupid mistake in an article casts doubt on the whole piece, on the author, and the medium generally. Sorry, it's just my training speaking.

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