Two girls are found dead in New York after a fatal game of 'subway surfing,' authorities say

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NEW YORK (AP) — New York City police found two girls dead early Saturday morning in what apparently was a game of “subway surfing” that turned out to be fatal, authorities said.

Police said they responded to a 911 call at the Marcy Avenue stop in Brooklyn just after 3 a.m. to find two unconscious and unresponsive females who were pronounced dead at the scene.

Police didn't identify the victims or give their ages. But New York City Transit President Demetrius Crichlow described them as girls involved in subway surfing.

“It’s heartbreaking that two young girls are gone because they somehow thought riding outside a subway train was an acceptable game," Crichlow said in a statement. “Parents, teachers and friends need to be clear with loved ones: getting on top of a subway car isn’t "surfing” — it’s suicide.”

He said the grieving families and the transit workers who discovered the girls have been “horribly shaken by this tragedy.”

Police said the investigation was ongoing.

A number of teenagers, mostly boys, have been killed or badly injured in recent years while trying to “subway surf,” a practice that dates back a century, but has been supercharged by social media.

Authorities have tried to address the problem with public awareness campaigns and by deploying drones to catch thrill-seekers in the act.

The transit authority has asked social media companies to take down videos glamorizing subway surfing. It’s also promoted public service announcements telling people to “Ride inside, stay alive."

Six people died surfing subway trains in the city last year, up from five in 2023.

The NYPD has reported that arrests of alleged subway surfers rose to 229 last year, up from 135 the year before. Most were boys, with an average age of around 14, according to police. The youngest was 9 years old.