Joint Base Lewis McCord Soldier Saved Lives After Amtrak Crash

Soldier Jumped From Pickup Truck to Help Rescue Passengers in Washington Train Crash

KTLA 5 News

December 19, 2017

A soldier from Joint Base Lewis-McChord says he saw the Amtrak train plunge from an overpass in Monday's crash and jumped into action to help save the people trapped inside.

"I saw many people that were just paralyzed with fear and I don't blame them at all. I mean, it was kind of a hard situation to watch unfold."

Second Lt. Robert McCoy hit the brakes on his pickup truck just in time, he told KTLA sister station KCPQ in Seattle.

"The train is going south and I'm just kind of driving, just driving, and I hear a loud noise and I look up and I see the train and it hits the concrete walls on the side and when it hits the walls -- the walls kind of exploded -- and the train just falls off. I see the train fall and it kind of falls on itself ... and it hits three vehicles that were in front of me -- a semi, an F-150, and a Kia Soul."

The soldier serves in the Army's medical field and he knew he had to do something.

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