WASHINGTON, D.C. — Sometimes heroes are made by happenstance.

That certainly is the case for Mike Barker, a 1998 Granby High School graduate and resident in the Washington, D.C. area who found himself at the right place at the right time late on the morning of Sept. 4.

While he stood on the subway platform at the Foggy Bottom Metro station that day, waiting for his commute to the store to arrive, Barker heard a sudden crash from another platform across the way.

Barker, who while in high school received the Good Citizenship Award from the Granby Lions Club, rushed to the other platform to search for the cause of the sound, and discovered a man laying across the tracks on his back, weakly yelling, “Help me! Help me!”

The Granby native and professor at Georgetown University pushed the emergency call button, but nothing happened. He peered at the platform display, which said the next train would arrive in four minutes. He climbed off the platform and onto the tracks.

“I thought four minutes, I can certainly get back in four minutes,” Barker said. “It felt like it was enough time. I thought I could at least get him under the platform because there is a space under where you stand. I thought at least I could get him off the tracks.”

His hunch was right: four minutes gave Barker the amount of time he needed to save the man, who accidentally drove his mobility scooter off the train platform.

“I thought he could step up on the seat of his scooter and get up, but he couldn’t really raise his feet up to climb out,” Barker said. “Clearly he wasn’t a going to be able to lift his legs, so I went down and got him in a fireman’s carry and then just set him down on the bottom of the platform.”

As soon as bystanders noticed the crash, another man ran to alert station security, who managed to message the incoming train to stop. By the time station security arrived to meet the fallen man, Barker had already placed him safely on the platform and was being pulled back onto the platform himself.

“I feel like I remember what happened, but sometimes you don’t remember correctly in this situation,” Barker said. “When I was on the platform, I remember thinking about it, but once I was down there, that’s where it gets a bit muddled.”

Barker doesn’t know the physical state of the man who fell because he didn’t stay long enough to find out. Once the man was safe and receiving help from security, he caught his train and went about his errands like nothing happened.

Barker’s wife Julie and his mother, the Rev. Sherry Tucker, leader of Easthampton Congregational Church UCC, were enthralled by Barker’s heroic story. Barker said his wife called him to get the story as soon as she saw his text message, then retold the story to her family and coworkers. Tucker emailed the Gazette, adding that Foggy Bottom Metro confirmed the station has the video of Barker’s save, but has yet to release it. His two sons, 4 and 7, were less impressed.

“His (Barker’s) quick thinking and courageous actions not only saved the life of the disabled man,” Tucker wrote, “but also serves as an inspiring reminder of how one individual can have impact in critical moments. Acknowledging and celebrating stories of heroism, especially someone who represents the community spirit of a town like Granby, can encourage other to act with kindness and bravery in times of need.”

Emilee Klein can be reached at eklein@gazettenet.com