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| Man Dies After Jumping on Subway Tracks With Daughter, 5, Police Say | Man Dies After Jumping on Subway Tracks With Daughter, 5, Police Say |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| [What you need to know to start the day: Get New York Today in your inbox.] | [What you need to know to start the day: Get New York Today in your inbox.] |
| A man was killed and his 5-year-old daughter was injured in the Bronx on Monday morning after he apparently jumped in front of a subway train while holding onto the girl, the police said. | A man was killed and his 5-year-old daughter was injured in the Bronx on Monday morning after he apparently jumped in front of a subway train while holding onto the girl, the police said. |
| The father, Fernando Balbuena-Flores, 45, was struck by a southbound No. 4 train at the Kingsbridge Road station shortly before 8 a.m., and was pronounced dead at the scene, officials said. | |
| The girl, who suffered cuts, was taken to Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx and was in stable condition, officials said. | The girl, who suffered cuts, was taken to Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx and was in stable condition, officials said. |
| Video taken by a witness from across the platform shows the girl, who has not been identified, being pulled out from under the subway car by two men on the tracks. | |
| The girl appears alert as she crawls out from under the train, her pink backpack briefly catching on the rail car before the two men hoist her onto a platform swarmed with commuters. | The girl appears alert as she crawls out from under the train, her pink backpack briefly catching on the rail car before the two men hoist her onto a platform swarmed with commuters. |
| One of the men, Antonio Love, 32, said he was walking by the Kingsbridge Road station when he heard people screaming. When he ran up to the train platform, he saw the other man in the video trying to help. | One of the men, Antonio Love, 32, said he was walking by the Kingsbridge Road station when he heard people screaming. When he ran up to the train platform, he saw the other man in the video trying to help. |
| Mr. Love said when he leapt onto the tracks, he saw Mr. Balbuena-Flores crushed underneath the train’s wheels. The girl was crying and bleeding from her head. | |
| “The only thing she was saying was ‘Papa, my papa,’” Mr. Love said. | “The only thing she was saying was ‘Papa, my papa,’” Mr. Love said. |
| Both men called for the girl, and after she crawled toward them, they helped her onto the train platform. | Both men called for the girl, and after she crawled toward them, they helped her onto the train platform. |
| Mr. Love and the other man were taken to St. Barnabas Hospital in the Bronx with minor injuries, the Fire Department said. | Mr. Love and the other man were taken to St. Barnabas Hospital in the Bronx with minor injuries, the Fire Department said. |
| At the hospital, Mr. Love, whose yellow sweatshirt was stained with some of the girl’s blood, said he was just “a little banged up.” Mostly, he said, he was shocked by what he had witnessed. | At the hospital, Mr. Love, whose yellow sweatshirt was stained with some of the girl’s blood, said he was just “a little banged up.” Mostly, he said, he was shocked by what he had witnessed. |
| Mr. Love said he was dismayed, upon reaching the train platform, to see so few people pulling out their phones but not lending a hand. | Mr. Love said he was dismayed, upon reaching the train platform, to see so few people pulling out their phones but not lending a hand. |
| “It was just panicking,” he said. “Like regular New Yorkers, pulling out their phones. Really? Let’s get down there and help.” | “It was just panicking,” he said. “Like regular New Yorkers, pulling out their phones. Really? Let’s get down there and help.” |
| Though he had never done anything similar before, Mr. Love said, he felt compelled to help. | Though he had never done anything similar before, Mr. Love said, he felt compelled to help. |
| Mr. Love also said he left his bag on the platform when he descended to the tracks, and that it had been stolen. | Mr. Love also said he left his bag on the platform when he descended to the tracks, and that it had been stolen. |
| “Why would somebody do that? I’m saving their lives and someone took my bag,” he said. | “Why would somebody do that? I’m saving their lives and someone took my bag,” he said. |
| The train’s operator, who has 20 years of experience on the job, was being treated for trauma and evaluated, transit union representatives said. | The train’s operator, who has 20 years of experience on the job, was being treated for trauma and evaluated, transit union representatives said. |
| Officials said they did not know what may have prompted Mr. Balbuena-Flores to jump. | |
| “Our thoughts are with the family members as well as with our employees who responded,” Shams Tarek, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, said in a statement. “This is a traumatic event for everyone involved.” | |
| As of July 22, at least 32 people had been killed this year after being struck by a train, according to the transit authority. During that same period, trains had hit 103 individuals either on the tracks or from subway platforms. | As of July 22, at least 32 people had been killed this year after being struck by a train, according to the transit authority. During that same period, trains had hit 103 individuals either on the tracks or from subway platforms. |
| Last year, 68 people died in fatalities related to train contact, out of 189 total collisions. | Last year, 68 people died in fatalities related to train contact, out of 189 total collisions. |
| Subway leaders last year said they were contending with a worrying rise in the number of people going onto the tracks, beyond suicides or attempted suicides. | Subway leaders last year said they were contending with a worrying rise in the number of people going onto the tracks, beyond suicides or attempted suicides. |
| Officials have suggested that if riders see someone who appears emotionally distressed, they should press the “emergency” button on a Help Point station or notify a subway worker. | Officials have suggested that if riders see someone who appears emotionally distressed, they should press the “emergency” button on a Help Point station or notify a subway worker. |
| The death on Monday was reminiscent of another episode in a different Bronx subway station in June 2018, when a woman jumped onto subway tracks with her two-month-old son. In that case, both the mother and her child were physically unharmed. | The death on Monday was reminiscent of another episode in a different Bronx subway station in June 2018, when a woman jumped onto subway tracks with her two-month-old son. In that case, both the mother and her child were physically unharmed. |
| If you are having thoughts of suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 (TALK) or go to SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for a list of additional resources. Here’s what you can do when a loved one is severely depressed. | If you are having thoughts of suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 (TALK) or go to SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for a list of additional resources. Here’s what you can do when a loved one is severely depressed. |