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Teens Found Fellow Classmate After He Was Struck By Train

MONUMENT, Colo. (CBS4) - A high school athlete is recovering in the hospital after losing part of his legs in an accident with a train.

Luke Hiser, 17, is the co-captain of the golf team at Palmer Ridge High School. The accident happened last weekend in Monument. Investigators were back on that scene Friday looking for more evidence.

Some other teens just happened to find Hiser lying on the train tracks a few minutes after the train hit him. Their swift action may have very well saved his life.

The teens had just finished cleaning up from a chaperoned barn dance to raise money for the Aurora theater shooting victims. They noticed the railroad crossing arm was stuck, and then they saw Hiser on the tracks.

"I looked closer and saw that he was hurt pretty bad," Ben Efram said. "So that's when I started dialing 911."

They tried to keep him calm and conscious until paramedics arrived. They said their training as lifeguards helped them stay calm themselves.

TRAIN ACCIDENT MAP
(credit: CBS)

What Efram didn't know at the time was that the victim was somebody he had known since first grade. He said the reality sunk in much later.

"It's kind of just shocking to know that it could happen to someone you have known your entire life," Efram said.

They visited Hiser in the hospital as he heals and he has thanked them, but that's not what they want.

"We don't want to take any gratitude or praise for this; for finding him," Alex Turner said. "We don't want that title as a hero. We're just grateful that we were there."

They hope others will learn a lesson from the near tragedy and think twice about their actions.

"You're not invincible, it's a real wake-up call," Turner said. "I think we want people to take from this -- it can happen to anybody."

The teens said Hiser is in good spirits and should eventually be able to walk and hopefully play golf again.

A support barbecue for Hiser will be held Sunday from 1:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. at the Dirty Woman Creek Park in Monument.

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