Steven Ciccone didn't hesitate Sunday morning while rushing to help fellow passengers after a Metro-North commuter train derailed in the Bronx.
Ciccone is a well-known celebrity pastry chef with cerebral palsy. But he won't call himself a hero, CBS New York reports -- even though one woman claims his actions saved her life.
Dr. Denise Williams, a 55-year-old dentist, fractured her spine in Sunday's fatal accident, according to CBS. But before help arrived, Ciccone went to her side, comforted her, and used a ball of yarn he'd been crocheting with to support her neck. Then, he checked in with her at New York Presbyterian-Columbia University Medical Center.
All the while, Ciccone ignored his own injuries. On Sunday night, from his own hospital bed, he told 13News Now that he only suffered a few bruises, and "achy joints." He instead focused on wishing Williams luck before she went in for back surgery.
"I could have been someone that lost their life. I could be someone having spinal surgery,” he told the station. “Yes, I have ailments and injuries. Yes, I'm in pain. Yes, I'm uncomfortable, but physicians are working very well to fix what's wrong with me or to make me more comfortable."
Williams' family, meanwhile, is grateful for Ciccone's heroism.
“I think he’s a hero, and not only that, he was trying to get in touch with everybody once he got to the hospital,” one family member told CBS. “He was just roaming the emergency room.”
Authorities say that four people were killed and at least 67 were injured in Sunday's accident. The investigation into what caused the derailment is ongoing, according to WABC.
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