MBTA bystanders rescue woman from Kendall Square tracks

By Jaclyn Reiss, Globe Correspondent

A group of people waiting for the subway at Kendall Square in Cambridge Sunday night helped rescue a woman who fell onto the MBTA tracks there.

The woman, a 54-year-old from Minnesota, did not make contact with the high-voltage third rail, and was taken to Massachusetts General Hospital for back pain, Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority spokesman Joe Pesaturo said in an email.

Witnesses said they were astounded by the swift reaction of others to save the woman. Elyse Tyson, a Boston resident who was waiting for the T, said she heard a commotion and then saw the woman lying in the middle of the tracks.

Tyson said the woman appeared to be unconscious, as she was not responding to people shouting down to her. Then, about five people jumped onto the tracks to help her back up onto the platform, where she apparently regained consciousness and started talking to people there.

“It was incredible,” Tyson said. “They jumped in without even thinking. It really restores your faith in humanity.”

Pesaturo said the woman’s husband helped assist her out of the pit, noting that there was no train in the area at the time of the accident.

If MBTA riders witness a person falling onto the T tracks, they should notify Transit Police or subway personnel immediately, Pesaturo said.