Tuesday, Oct 11 In-class exercise

The following is my article for the in-class writing exercise we did today. My outline looked like this:
- Main point: A young man saved an elderly man's life this morning
- Next point: What happened first? (Laboke's role)
- Next point: What happened next? (Paradiso and the role of the police)
- Next point: Status of the victim
- Final point: Afterthoughts on the incident (Laboke's thoughts, comments on his character from his boss)

And here is the article I came up with...

Old Orchard Beach - James Laboke, a resident of Old Orchard Beach, Maine for three years, wakes up at 5 a.m. every morning and walks four miles to his job at the Eezy Breezy Restaurant on East Grand Street waiting on tables.

This morning, however, Laboke came across a car that was stalled on nearby train tracks with a driver who appeared to be unconscious. He ran 100 yards to the police station on Pier Street where he reported what he saw to officials at 6 a.m. The police report said Laboke “pounded on the window but the driver remained unconscious”.

Janet Paradiso, a captain on the police force, was a mile away from the railroad crossing when she received the call on her cruiser’s radio about the stranded vehicle on the train tracks. She arrived at the scene at 6:05 a.m., five minutes before the scheduled 6:10 a.m. Amtrak Downeaster train was due to pass through Old Orchard Beach.

Upon arrival, Paradiso heard the approaching train’s whistle and later explained that she “knew there was no time”. She knew she needed to do something.

Chief of Police Brian Paul explained that Paradiso then rammed her police cruiser into the stationary vehicle, pushing it from the tracks.

Thirty seconds later, the scheduled train passed through the railroad crossing at 40 miles per hour.

“It was that close,” Paul said.

The driver of the vehicle was 80-year-old Francois Truffault, from Quebec City, Canada, who said he has been coming to Old Orchard Beach since he was a child.

He was brought to Southern Maine Medical Center after the incident where he said that he did not remember a thing. He also added that he was a diabetic, which could have caused him to go into insulin shock just as he reached the railroad crossing in his vehicle.

Truffault was listed in stable condition.

Laboke, a 17-year-old refugee from Afghanistan, told police he never thought about his actions. He continued, “I couldn’t let that man get crushed by a train.”

Laboke’s boss and owner of the Eezy Breezy Restaurant, Charles Champaigne, commented on his employee’s actions, saying “That young man is one of my most responsible employees.”