California police officer drags man in wheelchair from train tracks, split-second before train zooms by
A police officer in the Lodi area of central California is being heralded for her bravery after rescuing a man from what would almost certainly have been a fatal train accident.
In the early hours of Wednesday, Officer Erica Urrea from the Lodi Police Department was patrolling an area near rail tracks when she noticed a 66-year-old man in a wheelchair who was stuck on the tracks. With a train on its way, she quickly parked her vehicle and rushed towards the man, who wasn’t able to move as the train barrelled towards him.
*WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTACT BELOW:*
WOW! With just seconds to spare Officer Erica Urrea was able to save a man from an approaching train after his wheelchair was stuck on the train tracks.
(Lodi Police Department) pic.twitter.com/QmeuvVEGSa
— KSL NewsRadio (@kslnewsradio) August 13, 2020
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The bodycam video of the event shows the officer struggle to pull the man from his chair; she eventually succeeds in removing him from the critical danger area and both of them fall to the ground, right as the train passes by at lightning speed. The train appears, from the sound of the clip, to hit something or someone as it roars past.
The unidentified man suffered a leg injury and was attended to immediately by Officer Urrea and another officer. He was rushed to the hospital and provided with immediate care, and is expected to be OK.
“Officer Urrea risked her own life to save another and her actions prevented a tragedy today. We are extremely proud of Officer Erica Urrea and her heroism,” the department said in a statement.
