August 25, 2012

A 37-year-old mother and her 4-year-old son were saved by two anonymous men when they fell off a subway platform in a daring 10-second rescue during rush hour in Boston.

Meera Thakrar was hurrying through the MIT/Kendall station during rush hour when she thought she saw her train at the platform.

“I thought the train was right on this platform but it was on the other platform,” Thakrar told ABC News’ affiliate WCVB-TV. “It was real stupid of me.”

Video footage shows Thakrar, holding her son, walk straight into space and fall on to the tracks. She and her son land dangerously close to the third rail, pulsing with 600 volts of electricity.

Two commuters sprang into action almost immediately, jumping on to the rails to hoist both the child and the shocked mother to safety. The rescue took all of 10 seconds.

One of the rescuers, identified only as Kris, told the Boston Herald he had acted on "instinct".

"I did nothing. All I did is jump in and pick up the kid and hand him over to somebody. It's not a big deal."

MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo told the Boston Herald "The bystanders’ quick response is worthy of praise, but it's also important that the public remember that the subway's third rail is electrified.”

Meanwhile, Thakrar is thankful to her rescuers.

“Whoever saved me, thanks to him,” Thakrar told local station WCVB-TV in an interview. “They were there to protect us. God sent them for us.”

RT.com