France train hero was supposed to be at Oregon college

Michael Rollins | KGW-TV, Portland, Ore.

Show Caption Hide Caption France train hero was supposed to be at Oregon college One of three American men honored for taking down a gunman on a French train, was nearly present at yet another shooting attack. Alek Skarlatos was supposed to be in class at Umpqua Community College, but was instead doing an interview on "Ellen."

ROSEBURG, Ore. — One of three Americans who tackled a terror suspect on a train from Amsterdam to Paris in August was planning to attend an Oregon community college this fall and would have been on campus Thursday during a shooting that left 10 dead.

Instead, he was in Los Angeles on Dancing with the Stars, he said during an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

Ten people were killed after a gunman shot up a classroom at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg on Thursday. Authorities say the male shooter — whom they have refused to name publicly — was killed in a shootout with police.

Alek Skarlatos, 23, an Oregon National Guardsman, and two of his friends were hailed as heroes for subduing a gunman on the train.

In a taped interview with Ellen DeGeneres on Thursday, Skarlatos said he was supposed to be in the building where Thursday's shooting took place.

"I had classes in Snyder Hall," said Skarlatos."It's a fairly small community college, the town in general, everybody knows each other. So with that many deceased, I mean everybody's going to know at least one person."

The names of the victims have not yet been released.

"I would have been there today if I didn't agree to do this show," he said. "I had classes picked out and everything."

Skarlatos was last on campus in spring 2014, before his deployment to Afghanistan.

Skarlatos, U.S. Air Force Airman 1st Class Spencer Stone, 23, and Anthony Sadler, 23, a student at Sacramento State University were on the high-speed train from Amsterdam to Paris when a man armed with a Kalashnikov, an automatic Luger pistol and a box cutter raced through the car. They, along with Chris Norman, 62, a British businessman, disarmed Ayoub El-Khazzani, 26, a Moroccan with ties to radical Islam.

The trio received France's highest honor, the Legion d'Honneur, from French President François Hollande in August. In September, they were honored at the White House and at the Pentagon.

Stone was awarded the Purple Heart and Airman's Medal. Skarlatos received the Soldier's Medal. The medals are the highest awards bestowed on troops who act heroically in non-combat situations.

During the taping, Skarlatos also said that he wished he could have been at the college to help out during the shooting.

In a statement, he said:

While I was fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time in August aboard a train bound for Paris, I only wish that the same could be said for today. I praise the first responders who were on the ground today in Roseburg as they undoubtedly were integral in saving numerous lives and putting a stop to what could have been more tragic than it is. My heart and prayers go out to this community, my community, right now.

The episode of Ellen is scheduled to air Monday.

Contributing: John Bacon, Jane Onyanga-Omara, Tom Vanden Brook and Trevor Hughes, USA TODAY.

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