J. C. Shorter, 32, lift operator, saved Glenn E. Rankin, 16, schoolboy, and Patricia A. Berquist, 16, and attempted to save Esther M. McCleary, 17, from being killed by a train, Massillon, Ohio, September 16, 1953. At a train crossing, Glenn, Patricia, and Esther were standing close to a track parallel to one on which a long freight train was passing when a train traveling at a speed of 30 m.p.h. approached from the opposite direction and rounded a curve 300 feet away. With a startled cry, Esther took one step onto the track. Shorter ran 50 feet to Glenn and Patricia, arriving when the train was 15 feet away, and simultaneously swung them clear of the track just as the locomotive grazed Glenn’s arm. Shorter momentarily thrust one hand into the path of the train, barely touching Esther, who was struck by the front of the locomotive and hurled 90 feet. Shorter pivoted clear of the train, which passed at a slightly reduced speed and stopped 2,200 feet beyond him. Glenn and Patricia were treated for shock and lacerations. Esther was pronounced dead at a hospital. Shorter was nervous for several days. 3886-42980
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