Thomas Eugene Foust

Thomas Eugene Foust saved a woman from being struck by a train, Glenview, Illinois, September 8, 2007. An 83-year-old woman mistakenly drove her automobile onto one of two railroad tracks at a crossing, and the car became stuck as a passenger train approached on that track at high speed. Thomas, 17, student, who had been driving with a few friends behind the woman, saw what was happening. He and others immediately ran to the car as the crossing’s gates and bell were activated, indicating that the train was about 32 seconds away. Thomas and his friends urged the woman to exit her car, and as the train bore down, he pulled open the driver’s door, reached inside, and unfastened her safety belt. He then pulled the woman from the car, took her 10 feet to a fence that bordered the track bed, and shielded her with his body. Within seconds, the train struck the car and knocked it into the path of another train, which was approaching on the second track. The car was struck again, sending debris flying. The woman was shaken but uninjured.