A TikTok video depicting a railway worker rescuing a puppy from the tracks of an oncoming train has gone viral with 6.5 million views.
Onlookers suspected the beautiful blue Staffordshire Terrier pup had been abandoned at the station, though it was later revealed that she had escaped her home through an open garage door.
An Everyday Hero Emerges
56-year-old Paul Hawthorn was working in the booking hall of England’s Leagrave Station at approximately 7 a.m. on October 17 when he heard a frantic puppy was running around the platform of an incoming London-bound train. The pooch was temporarily detained by a commuter but wriggled free as the woman left to catch her train.
When Hawthorn arrived on the platform, the overwhelmed pup was again in harm’s way.
“Then my worst fear was realized as it jumped down on the tracks,” Hawthorn told Newsweek. “I was thinking ‘What should I do?’ and then my training kicked in. I rang the signalman to caution the trains, getting them to slow down ready to stop if necessary.
“I’m not allowed to go down on the track but the guy from the coffee kiosk on the platform there had some croissants and enticed the dog over to the platform edge. It couldn’t jump back up but as it put its paws up to get the croissant I managed to grab it and haul it up onto the platform.
“I couldn’t let go—it would have wriggled free again—so I just held on and two people came along and hauled me up to my feet.”
A Happy Ending
The video, posted by TikTok user getinthebarth, does not show the heroic rescue, cutting from the frightened dog on the tracks straight to a heartwarming scene of Hawthorn cradling the grateful pup. The selfless man sits on the platform with the pooch happily perched in his lap, offering the occasional ‘thank you’ lick.
The clip is captioned:
“People dump dogs at stations like this all the time. For every evil person, there is a kind-hearted one.”
Hawthorn soon learned that his new dog pal was actually a loved pet, not another abandoned statistic as previously feared. The pup’s family had posted about her escape online, asking for help bringing her home.
“It was quite traumatic at the time,” Hawthorn said. “I don’t own a dog but we help people out by dog sitting and I just felt sorry for the dog. I thought, ‘oh my God, it’s going to get run over by a train.’ It worked out all right in the end, it was a relief.”
“In the mess room, it was play-biting with my uniform. It was a lovely dog,” he added.
Thameslink, the rail company that operates trains at Leagrave, told Newsweek:
“Paul’s a real Thameslink hero. The railway tracks are a dangerous place, and his quick thinking certainly saved this dog’s life.”
Check out the inspiring video below.
@getinthebarth People dump dogs at stations like this all the time 💔 for every evil person there is a kind hearted one #hero #doglove #rescue ♬ Arcade – Duncan Laurence
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