New York: Subway surfer, 15, loses arm after falling off train

A 15-year-old boy who was reportedly “subway surfing” on New York’s mass transit system fell and severed his arm.

The teenager was riding a northbound R train with his friends at the 74th Street-Roosevelt Avenue station in Queens around 10:25 a.m. Monday when he tried to climb onto the roof of the car and fell, law enforcement and Metropolitan sources said Transportation Authority (MTA) with the New York Post.

“We know he surfed the subway on the outside of the car,” a transit official told the newspaper. “Usually when surfing the subway, you have to get off before the tunnel. He must have missed that point.’

The boy fell onto the tracks, the sources said.

“They found his arm under the train,” the worker said, and his left limb was severed “from the elbow down.”

The victim was apparently in shock.

“He was just looking around like nothing happened,” the worker added. “He wasn’t crying or anything.”

According to police, the boy was taken to Bellevue Hospital around 11:30 a.m. and recorded in stable condition.

A passenger who saw the boy fall pressed an emergency button and told the conductor that the boy’s arm had been severed. A girl who was with the boy was crying when first responders arrived.

Images from the scene showed blood splattered on the platform.

The police initially did not say whether charges would be filed.

Northbound M and R trains skipped the incident’s station until at least noon, according to the MTA.

The incident came just over two months after a group of subway surfers were caught standing on top of cars while crossing the Williamsburg Bridge from Manhattan to Brooklyn. The footage showed some of them hopping between cars and others sitting on the edge of the cars. In June, police investigated the incident, with the group at the time being charged with possible trespassing and reckless endangerment.

Another subway surfer was killed in 2021 while riding a J-train, ABC 7 reported. He fell out of the car onto the tracks and was struck by the train.

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