Douglas James Pearce, 28, railroad brakeman, saved an unidentified woman, about 20, from being struck by a train, Gallup, New Mexico, June 28, 1968. At night an unidentified woman was sleeping on the track on which a freight train was approaching at about 12 m.p.h. Pearce and the engineer noticed the woman when the train was about 115 feet from her. As the engineer applied braking, Pearce descended steps at the side of the engine. He jumped onto ballast of loose cinders and immediately began running. When he was ahead of the slowing train, Pearce moved onto the track. He reached the woman and obtained a hold on her wrist when the lead engine was about 25 feet away and approaching at a decreasing speed of approximately seven m.p.h. Pearce pivoted on one foot, swung the woman off the track, and at the same time jumped clear of the train’s path. The train stopped with the lead engine about 100 feet beyond them. The woman ran from the scene before her identity could be learned.
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