A 15-year-old boy has died after allegedly riding on top of a subway train in Queens, New York, in the early hours of Friday, July 4.
According to the New York Police Department, officers responded to a call around 2:45 a.m. at the Queensboro Plaza subway station. Upon arrival, they discovered the teen unconscious and unresponsive. Emergency medical services transported him to Bellevue Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The NYPD confirmed that an investigation is ongoing. The teen’s identity has not yet been released.
Law enforcement sources told PEOPLE that the boy was “subway surfing” — riding on top of a moving train — when he fell. He had reportedly been on top of a southbound 7 train as it pulled into the Queensboro Plaza station.
Video and images obtained by the New York Post show first responders using ladders to reach the teen’s body atop the train. Blood was visible on the roof of the subway car as EMS workers worked quickly to lower him onto a stretcher and rush him to the hospital.
This incident follows a series of similar tragedies in New York City. Just last month, a 14-year-old boy was critically injured while subway surfing in the Bronx. He was found unconscious at the Baychester station with traumatic injuries.
In June, New York Governor Kathy Hochul launched a public awareness campaign in partnership with the MTA and city schools to warn teens about the deadly risks of subway surfing.
“Nothing is more important to me than keeping New Yorkers safe,” Hochul said in a statement. “The message is clear: ride inside and stay alive.”
According to city officials, there were five subway surfing-related deaths between 2018 and 2022. That number jumped in recent years, with five fatalities reported in 2023 and six in 2024, according to the NYPD.
