This Is Why We Discourage Graffiti #428

From the New York Times:

Boy’s Leg Is Severed in Tunnel on N Line

A teenager’s leg was severed by a train while he was in a Brooklyn subway tunnel on Saturday night, planning to paint graffiti with two other boys, the authorities said.

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They were about 75 feet north of the platform at the Kings Highway station when the accident occurred, the police said.

The teenagers had noticed a train leaving the station and were standing inside recesses normally used by maintenance workers alongside the tracks. It was unclear whether Jose’s leg had been in the path of the train, if his clothing got caught, or if there was some other cause, the police said.

“He was in a box by himself,” Julio said, referring to the recess that Jose was standing in. “I knew something was going to happen, I saw my cousin walk to my brother’s box. The train sliced his knee. I saw sparks and him laying there.”

According to a law enforcement official who insisted on anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the details of the investigation, Jose was hit by a metal part of the train called the shoe, which connects to the third rail.

“He is lucky that all he had was his leg amputated,” the official said. “If he had been touching another piece of metal when he was hit by the shoe, he would have burst into flames because of all the electricity.”

It was not clear whether Jose’s leg was severed by the shoe or by the train’s wheels.

The train did not stop because the driver did not know anyone had been hit, the official said.

Julio said that he yelled to his brother, “Droopy’s dead! Droopy’s dead!” using Jose’s nickname.

“He was moaning, ‘Oh, my knee,’ ” Julio said. “We said, ‘Don’t worry, we’ll get you out of here.’ ”

Julio said that only a little skin connected the lower part of Jose’s leg with the top; Julio tried to hold it together while his brother struggled to carry Jose on his back.

A train passed in the other direction, and the police and rescue workers soon arrived.

“He asked the cops, ‘Can I get up and walk?’ ” Julio said. “They said, ‘No, you have no leg.’ ”