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Visually impaired man rescued from MARTA tracks

By Berndt Petersen, WSB-TV
By Berndt Petersen, WSB-TV

ATLANTA — A visually impaired man was rescued at the Five Points MARTA station Thursday after he fell onto the track during the morning commute.

Jason Molineaux sent Channel 2 Action News video of a group of people helping to hoist the man off the southbound tracks.

Molineaux said he had just gotten off a MARTA train around 8 a.m. and he instantly knew something was very wrong.

"The first thing I heard was all the screaming and yelling. You can tell it wasn't just regular hoot and hollering that happens on MARTA. It was like something that was wrong," he told Channel 2's Berndt Petersen.

Molineaux said two riders jumped down and pulled the victim away from the rails. A second pair of good Samaritans then helped pull the victim up and out.

Good Samaritans rescue man from tracks at the Five Points MARTA station

"(It was) super brave because the thought did cross my mind to jump down with them, but you have to think about the fact that there's electricity and you don't know when the next train is coming. How are you going to help the guy? So, what they did was very brave," he said.

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Daniel Summers, who jumped onto the tracks to help the man, said he never thought twice about the danger.

"I heard people yelling. As I got closer, I realized they were yelling, 'Help!'" Summers said. "There was a split second when I looked around and said, 'There's no police here. It's just me. Do I need to be the one who jumps in?' I don't remember looking for a train, but I remember looking at the rails and just hopped right in."

As soon as the man was back on the platform, several MARTA police officers were seen rushing in to assist.

The viewer said a southbound train pulled in about a minute after the man was rescued.

The agency said as soon as police realized the man had fallen onto the tracks, they stopped approaching trains.

The victim suffered a broken ankle and was scheduled for surgery Thursday.

The MARTA Police Department said it is investigating.

Cox Media Group

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