Mount Shasta officer recognized for pulling man from tracks seconds before train passes by

A Mount Shasta police officer has been recognized for saving the life of a man whose wheelchair was stuck on railroad tracks last mon.

Officer Ross Barnes received the Mount Shasta Police Department's Meritorious Service Award. Police Chief Robert Gibson presented the plaque at the June 13 Mount Shasta City Council meeting.

Barnes pulled the man from danger seconds before a train went by the night of May 19.

According to the department, Barnes was on patrol during his graveyard shift when he saw the railroad crossing arms start to lower shortly after midnight on Alma Street.

One of the crossing bars was going up and down and Barnes saw the man in the wheelchair stuck on the tracks. 

"Without any thought for his own personal safety, Officer Barnes went to the man and was able to pull him safely off the tracks, just seconds before the train came through the crossing," police said in a Facebook post.

"Officer Barnes' actions are credit to his dedication to the safety of the citizens of Mount Shasta and demonstrates his exemplary dedication to the preservation of life," the department said.

Mike Chapman is an award-winning reporter and photographer for the Record Searchlight in Redding, Calif. His newspaper career spans Yreka and Eureka in Northern California and Bellingham, Wash. Support local journalism by subscribing today.