Event Honors Crash-Site Rescuers

Hector Martinez remembers hearing the sound of screeching metal, then seeing flames shoot into the air. When the Costco employee learned what had happened, he grabbed a fire extinguisher and rushed to the scene of the Metrolink train crash.

“I don’t know how I made my decision. I just went,” said Martinez, 36, who joined fellow Costco employees in the rescue effort Jan. 26. “When you know there are people that need help, that are yelling for help, you help.”

Before emergency units arrived, Martinez had attempted to put out a fire, helped passengers off the train and comforted victims. In all, 11 people died in the train derailment that was allegedly caused by a suicidal man who drove his SUV onto the tracks.

Martinez recalled holding the hand of a dying man that morning. “I went to get towels to cover him because he was shaking,” he said. “I remember telling him, ‘Hold on buddy, hold on, the ambulance is on the way.’ But it was too late.” Martinez was among 14 Costco employees and two deliverymen recognized Wednesday for their actions. Among those attending the ceremony in the store’s parking lot were Glendale Mayor Bob Yousefian, Los Angeles Mayor James K. Hahn, Los Angeles Police Chief William J. Bratton and Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca.

“The real first responders will always be the people who will trust their instinct to do something that’s needed in the absence of any other choice,” said Baca.

A sheriff’s deputy, James Tutino, was among those killed in the crash.

Officials also praised the cooperation of 19 public agencies involved in a rescue effort that included 100 fire companies, 546 law enforcement officers and 59 ambulances.