A man who is being hailed as a hero after he rescued a missing child dangerously walking on the monorail tracks at Hersheypark said his “dad instincts kicked in” and compelled him to jump into action.
John Sampson, of Bucks County, Pennsylvania, fearlessly climbed onto the roof of a snack stand and pulled himself up onto the tracks after he saw the child walking alone almost 100 feet above the ground on Saturday evening while spectators held their breath.
“Dad instincts kicked in, and then [I was] just trying to figure things out and how to get up there as fast as possible,” Sampson told Fox 43.
He picked up the boy and safely brought him down.
“[I felt] relief, absolute relief, and even I could feel it in him — the relief as soon as he got into my arms,” Sampson said. “Thank goodness he came straight into my arms, and it went nice and simple in that sense.”
The boy was reported missing by his parents at around 5 p.m. after he entered a secure area for the monorail ride, Hersheypark officials said.
He was at the station for about 20 minutes before he began walking along the track — frightening park-goers below.
“Go to him now!” one terrified park guest yells in one video before Sampson helped him down.
The monorail was closed at the time and had been fenced off by a chained closure at its entrance and a barricaded turnstile at the platform, according to park officials.
“We are grateful for the vigilance of our guests and the swift response of our team, and we remain committed to maintaining the highest levels of guest safety throughout Hersheypark,” the park said in a statement.
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