A Union Pacific railroad engineer managed to save a puppy's life after he saw a man leave something behind on the railway tracks, reports The Daily News.

That "something" turned out to be a 10-month old puppy named Banjo. He is a poodle-terrier mix. The hero railroad engineer remains to be unidentified.

The incident occurred on April 2 in California, but details about the event only emerged today.

Once the engineer realized it was a puppy tied to the tracks, he immediately hit the emergency breaks, which stopped the train just feet away from the scared dog.

Once the train came to a halt, Union Pacific Special Agent Sal Pina untied the frightened puppy and brought him to an animal shelter for adoption.

"It's probably one of the worst things I've seen," Agent Pina said. "I've never seen something like this."

Riverside County Animal Services then tracked down the 78 year-old man who committed the heinous act.

He told agents that his family "didn't want the dog" and he "didn't know what to do with him."

Because the man was "confused or senile and didn't fully understand what he had done," no criminal actions were taken according to spokesman John Welsh.

Banjo is currently up for adoption at the Coachella Valley Animal Campus in Thousand Palms.