Wheelchair-bound man falls on subway tracks, commuter heroically saves him minutes before train arrives

File image of the wheelchair-bound man being rescued at the Union Square Station, NYC. Twitter/@SubwayCreatures

A wheelchair-bound man, who fell from the subway platform onto the rail tracks, was heroically rescued by a fellow commuter in New York City. A video of the rescue created waves on social media.

The incident took place at the Union Square Station, just minutes before a train was set to arrive. When passengers saw a wheelchair-bound man had accidentally fallen on the tracks, one commuter jumped down without any delay to rescue him. With the help of other passengers, the man and his wheelchair were pulled to safety, seconds before the train arrived. Watch the viral video here:

This afternoon in Union Square a man in a wheelchair somehow ended up on the subway tracks. Luckily, a Good Samaritan jumped down and rescued the man about 10s before the train came into the station. Huge shoutout to whoever the guy is who jumped down to help! #subwaycreatures pic.twitter.com/Uhx2drg2NH

— Rick (@SubwayCreatures) August 4, 2021

The video has garnered over 1.1 million views and over 4,000 likes. People on the internet were full of praises for the Good Samaritan and applauded his heroic rescue. Several social media users said the daring rescue highlighted the spirit of New York, others commented on the need to make public transport safer for specially-abled people. Some people, however, also questioned why commuters were recording a video instead of helping the person.

Lauren Mennen, who recorded the viral video, shared her thoughts about her decision to record and post the clip. “One man jumped right into action,” Mennen explained in an interview. “There are heroes in action and I was like I’m going to wave my hand at the train and it will all be good,” she added. Mennen hoped that people would take positivity from the clip.

The rescued man was later taken to the Bellevue hospital, according to media reports. He was reported to be conscious and in a stable and alert condition. Both he and his rescuer have not yet been identified by the police.