The International Union and Local 229 recognized three Local 229 members for their heroic and humanitarian actions after a brutal stabbing of a passenger near the Hudson Bergen Light Rail station at Liberty State Park in Jersey City, NJ.

The horrific incident took place during an early September morning rush hour. A knife wielding man, police later described as a person with a history of mental disease, stabbed a commuter without warning and took off. The three TWU maintainers were working nearby and heard people screaming.

Local 229 member Kevin Wendolowski, a 24-year old Jersey City native who hopes for a career in law enforcement, took off after the perpetrator, jumped a fence and cornered him nearby.

“I pretended my cell phone was a gun and ordered him to lay face down,” he said. Kevin then held the stabber on the ground until police arrived.

His two co-workers, Karen Stoute and Michael Dickens, rushed to aid the victim, a 36-year old man. The two tried to stem the bleeding and comfort him until paramedics arrived. Unfortunately, the father of three young children died on the way to the hospital.

TWU Transit Division Director Hubert Snead, who presented the awards of recognition at a ceremony on the company property in Jersey City, said: “It was an honor presenting these awards to these great people. This was action above and beyond. We’re all very proud of the way these heroic people conducted themselves under great stress and danger.”