A commuter died at the 59th Street-Columbus Circle station Monday in New York City after he got caught in the train’s closing doors and was dragged onto the tracks.
The 20-year-old man was allegedly rushing to reach the Southbound 1 train at around 5:00 p.m. when either a bag or an article of clothing got caught on the doors and the train departed, ABC7 reported. The victim was apparently somehow hit by the same train, according to the outlet. Nobody is sure exactly how the incident happened yet, authorities told the New York Post.
Police pronounced the victim dead at a station close to Central Park, New York Post noted.
“While the investigation is in its earliest stages, it appears this was a terrible accident that did not involve criminal activity,” MTA said in an announcement late Monday night, according to the outlet.
The incident caused the 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 trains to delay in both directions, according to ABC7. (RELATED: ‘Most Abusive Customer’: James Corden Banned From Famous NYC Restaurant After Alleged ‘Extremely Nasty’ Behavior)
NYC subway commuter killed after getting caught in train’s closing doors https://t.co/p6vin3xo5r pic.twitter.com/UDtDnAD4ub
— New York Post (@nypost) October 25, 2022
Although law enforcement does not believe this incident to have been criminal activity, deaths at the New York City subway system are becoming more common, as murders on the city’s subway are at a 25-year high. Between 1997 and 2019, New York experienced no more than five murders on a subway per year, according to the New York Post. In 2020, that number rose to six, and then to eight in 2021, the outlet reported.