15 Minute Story- Train Almost Takes Life in Old Orchard Beach

80-year-old Francois Truffaut, of Quebec City, Canada was almost crushed to death by the Amtrak Downeaster today at about 6 a.m.

If it wasn't for James Laboke, 17, of Old Orchard Beach, Maine, the man would have been dead. Laboke said the man appeared to be unconscious. The doors were locked and the car's engine was running as the car idled on the train tracks. Laboke ran 100 yards to the police station since he didn't have a cell phone.

Luckily, a cruiser was parked about a mile away from the railroad crossing. Janet Paradiso, captain of Old Orchard Beach Police, arrived at the scene at 6:05 a.m. after she got the call about the stranded vehicle. She heard the train's whistle just as she arrived. "I knew there was no time. I had to do something," Janet said.

According to Chief Brian Paul, of Old Orchard Beach Police, Paradiso rammed her police car into the 1987 pink Cadillac Seville and pushed it from the tracks. Thirty seconds later, the train passed through the crossing at about 40 miles per hour.

The hero, Laboke said later on, "I never thought about it. I just knew I couldn't let that man get crushed by a train."

Laboke's boss at the Eezy Breezy Restaurant, Charles Champaigne, wasn't surprised to hear about Laboke's decision to speak up. "That young man is one of my most responsible employees. He's just a great kid," Champaigne said.

Truffaut is now at Southern Maine Medical Center and is in stable condition. He is a diabetic, and may have gone into insulin shock just as he reached the railroad crossing.