Teen Subway Surfer Killed, Another Wounded, Jumping Cars In Brooklyn

NEW YORK CITY — One teen died and another was seriously hurt during a subway surfing misadventure atop an L train in Brooklyn, officials said.

The two 14-year-old boys were knocked off a Manhattan-bound train near Broadway Junction as it went into a tunnel Thursday about 1:45 p.m., said NYPD Chief of Transit Michael Kemper.

The impact killed one boy and left the other seriously injured, he said.

“We urge anyone even thinking of subway surfing, don’t do it," he said.

The boy's death is the second this year that officials linked to subway surfing.

In February, a 15-year-old boy died while subway surfing on a J train crossing the Williamsburg Bridge. MTA officials at the time said it was part of a 366 percent increase in incidents where people rode outside of trains since 2020.

Mayor Eric Adams, during a Thursday news conference, blamed the popularity of Tik Tok videos showing subway surfing for the dangerous behavior's rise. He called on the social media app to ban those videos.

"Subway surfing kills," he said.

The subway surfing incident Thursday unfolded while one teen played hooky from school and the other had just graduated from junior high, Adams said.

The boys went onto the train and climbed atop it at the Broadway Junction stop, Kemper said. As the train moved toward the Bushwick Avenue and Aberdeen Street station, it entered a tunnel, he said.

"It was as the train was entering the tunnel that we believe they made contact, knocking them off the top of the train and causing the injuries and death," he said.