Theodore Griffith helped to save Norman L. Mumey from being struck by a train, Fairport, Iowa, July 25, 1992. Mumey, 82, was driving an automobile through a railroad crossing when the car became stuck between the rails of one of the tracks. Griffith, 34, welder, and his wife arrived at the crossing and, seeing the situation, went to help Mumey. As Griffith attempted to dislodge the car, they became aware that a train was approaching on the track, at a speed of about 40 m.p.h. Griffith’s wife reached into the car, unfastened Mumey’s safety belt, and urged him to flee, but he remained in the driver’s seat. Griffith joined his wife at the driver’s side of the car, and together they pulled Mumey out, then ran with him from the track. Although the train was in emergency braking, it struck the car seconds later, demolishing it, and continued well beyond the point of impact before stopping.
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67073-7726