Life-saver Jeni wins accolade

Railway worker Jeni Rhoden is today named as the latest Express & Star Local Hero for saving the life of a man who lay helpless off the track.

She used an emergency hand signal to stop a train which was travelling towards the man at a Birmingham station.

The drama started when she spotted a man on the tracks at Hamstead Station and challenged him. He tried to run away but slipped, banging his head on the rail and hurting his ankle when Miss Rhoden spotted the train on its way into the station.

The man was still lying on the tracks so she ran to the end of the platform and raised both arms to alert the driver to do an emergency stop.

He was then lifted to safety while the emergency services arrived. He had broken his ankle and injured his head.

Miss Rhoden, of Rawnsley in Cannock, has already won a Superstaff award from Central Trains.

And today she is the latest winner of a Local Heroes Award, organised by the Express & Star in conjunction with Wolverhampton Wanderers and Birmingham Midshires.

The 44-year-old will be joining other monthly winners of the award for a celebrity awards lunch at Molineux in December.

She said: "It's quite overwhelming really because I'm quite a private person and I think I was just doing what I am paid to do and what I was trained to do. But it is nice to be thanked and to receive the award from the Express & Star."

Miss Rhoden, who was on duty as a customer service assistant at Hamstead Station, was among workers who had been trained in giving the emergency hand signal which involves a person putting both their arms up like a cricket umpire giving a six.

Express & Star editor Adrian Faber said: "Jeni says she was just doing her job, but clearly this man could have died without her quick thinking. She truly deserves this award for her actions on that day."