BROOKLYN (PIX11) — A pair of housing cops assigned to a train station as part of Mayor Eric Adams Subway Safety plan pulled a bleeding man to safety after he fell to the tracks, officials said.
Suleiman Rifai, a 61-year-old visually impaired man fell “face-first” onto the tracks at the Grant Street station on May 18, MTA officials said. He was reunited with Officer Jason Macaluso and Detective Henry Greco on Wednesday.
“We did hear the train coming towards us at first and then we saw the light of a train coming,” Detective Greco said. “I waved my arms and used my flashlight to wave down the train to slow it down.
The officers grabbed Rifai and pulled him to safety. Body camera video shows he was bleeding.
“When I heard your voices, I knew I would be OK,” Rifai said to the officers. “And I’m OK today and again, from the bottom of my heart, you are my friends for life for saving my life. And I really appreciate you.”
He’s not alone in appreciating the officers. The MTA awarded them with Hero of the Subway commendations.
Their actions in the subway are far outside of the work they usually do. As neighborhood coordination officers, they’ve worked with youth to run a sports program, Chief of the NYPD’s Housing Bureau Jeffrey Maddrey said. They brought food trucks to Brooklyn during the pandemic to help people dealing with food insecurity.
“We’re housing cops,” Officer Macaluso said. “Normally, we’re in buildings walking up and down stairs on patrol. We don’t have trains rolling towards us.”