‘Heroic’ Indian-American metro train driver saves Asian man in hate crime

The metro transit system is referred to as the "subway" in New York and the drivers as "operators".

New York: A quick-thinking Indian origin metro train driver saved an Asian man who was shoved onto the tracks in an apparent hate crime, according to media reports.

The driver, Tobin Madathil, said that he had put the train on an emergency mode after he saw the man on the tracks, managing to stop the train less than 10 metres from the victim, and went on to help him, the New York Post reported on Tuesday.

He told the newspaper, “I’m glad I was able to stop on time and didn’t hit the guy, thank God!” The Hill website, which concentrates on political coverage, called him “heroic.”

“Right when I was coming into the station people were waving at me, and that’s when I immediately placed the train into emergency mode,” Madathil, 29, who has been a driver with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority for two years, told the Post. “I exited the train and went to the victim. He was bleeding from the head.”

The metro transit system is referred to as the “subway” in New York and the drivers as “operators”. “I just try to stay focused at all times when I operate, just watch the tracks and platform, just be alert,” Madathil said.