Teen Subway Surfer Thrown from Elevated J/M/Z Train in Williamsburg, Brooklyn

A 14-year-old boy was thrown from the top of an elevated J/M/Z train in Williamsburg, Brooklyn on the afternoon of November 2 at around 3:41 p.m. as the train passed through the Hewes Street station on the centre-running track. Police from the NYPD's 90th Precinct and Transit District 33 responded to a 911 call reporting that the teenager, who has not been identified, fell while believed to be subway surfing — the act of riding on top of a moving train. He was transported across the East River to Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan, where he remained in stable condition. No arrests had been made as of the investigation's continuation. The J/M/Z line is regarded as one of the city's most popular corridors for subway surfing because its largely elevated, outdoor route makes it easier to climb on top of trains and provides a backdrop for the social media videos that have fuelled the trend. The NYPD has deployed drones to identify surfers and has recorded more than 200 subway-surfing arrests since launching a crackdown in 2023. That same year, the city and the MTA introduced the "Subway Surfing Kills — Ride Inside, Stay Alive" public-awareness campaign, which uses the voices of teenagers to warn peers of the dangers involved.