A 13-year-old girl was killed, and another was critically injured while subway surfing on the 7 train in Corona on Sunday night. (File Photo by Michael Dorgan)
Oct. 28, 2024 By Bill Parry
Just four days after a 13-year-old boy was killed while subway surfing in Ridgewood, a 13-year-old girl was killed, and a 12-year-old girl was critically injured while subway surfing on a 7 train in Corona on Sunday night.
Police from the 115th Precinct in Jackson Heights and Transit District 20 responded to a 911 call of a person struck by the 7 train at the 111th Street subway station at around 10:45 p.m. on Oct. 27.
Officers found the two girls unconscious and unresponsive on the 7 train tracks above Roosevelt Avenue. The two girls had reportedly got on the 7 train at the Main Street-Flushing station and were seen subway surfing before falling between cars and it pulled into the station. EMS responded to the location and pronounced the 13-year-girlgirl dead at the scene, and rushed the other youngster to Elmhurst Hospital, where she was listed in critical condition.
The girl remains in critical condition as of Monday morning, according to an NYPD spokesman, who added that the identity of the deceased is pending proper family notification.
NYC Transit President Demetrius Crichlow addressed the latest tragedy during Monday’s MTA Board’s Transit Committee meeting.
“Unfortunately, we had a deeply saddening incident of subway surfing on the 7 line in Queens; two young girls were subway surfing on a Manhattan-bound train outside of 111th St. in Corona when they fell between cars,” Crichlow said. “One of the two tragically lost their life, and the other remains in critical condition. Having children that are teenagers and one that’s preteen, I can’t imagine what the family is going through right now, to lose a child in this manner. This is no game; the consequences we’ve seen time and time again.”
Teenagers who knew the girl who passed away have begun a memorial on the 111 Street Subway station. Photos courtesy of Amin Laboriel
She became the sixth victim to die while subway surfing in New York City so far this year and her death occurred four days after a teenager was killed while subway surfing on an M train approaching the Forest Avenue subway station in Ridgewood on the night of Wednesday, Oct. 23. Police from the 104th Precinct in Ridgewood responded to a 911 call of a person struck by a train just before 10 p.m. Officers found the boy on the tracks unconscious and unresponsive. EMS responded to the location and pronounced the teen dead at the scene. The Ridgewood subway surfing death happened on the same day Crichlow was appointed as the 12th NYC Transit President.
“We just have to implore parents, teachers, schools, friends, anyone that knows someone that is involving themselves in subway surfing, even thinking about it, to talk about the consequences,” Crichlow said. “That should be the first part of the discussion. This is no game. There’s no reset at the end of the game, you just restart it. That doesn’t happen.”
Last year, the MTA launched a campaign to deter youth from subway surfing. “Ride Inside, Stay Alive” features public address announcements and station advertisements designed and delivered by teens themselves in a bid to speak directly to would-be subway surfers.
“So we really want people to get the sense that this is a life and death matter. There are consequences,” Crichlow said. “There is no do-over. It’s a joyride that ends with nothing but — no joy at all. And families will continue to deal with it indefinitely.”
There have been six subway surfing fatalities through Oct. 27, one more than the five subway surfing fatalities over the same period last year. Through Oct. 20, the NYPD has arrested 163 people for subway surfing so far this year, a 22% increase from the 138 arrests at the same point last year.
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It is a tragic news. Several teenagers who new the girl have started a memorial on the 111 subway station. RIP Krystel.