Two girls were found dead on top of a subway train in New York City, prompting the NYPD to release a video and warning about the dangers of "subway surfing."
The New York Post identified the girls as Zemfira Mukhtarov, 12, of Brooklyn, and Ebba Morina, 13, of Manhattan. According to the Post, it's believed the girls lost their lives from "subway surfing," and the news site noted that five other people have lost their lives "to the viral trend" this year alone.
The loved ones of one of the girls spoke out through a GoFundMe page. "With heavy hearts, we are reaching out for support after the tragic loss of my beloved daughter, Zemfira, who passed away in a devastating accident at a subway station. She was 12 and she would have turned 13 in just 2 weeks, full of life, and taken from us far too soon in a heartbreaking incident that we believe was a subway surfing accident," the page says.
On October 6, the NYPD shared a video with a warning about the dangers of subway surfing.
"Subway surfing kills. That's why we are using every tool possible to save lives. When our drones spotted two teenagers attempting to subway surf, our officers acted immediately by safely stopping the train before it could depart. Ride inside and stay alive," the police wrote on X.
According to NBC News, another top official also issued a warning about subway surfing.
Demetrius Crichlow told NBC News: “It’s heartbreaking that two young girls are gone because they somehow thought riding outside a subway train was an acceptable game."
“Parents, teachers, and friends need to be clear with loved ones: getting on top of a subway car isn’t ‘surfing’ — it’s suicide. I’m thinking of both the grieving families, and transit workers who discovered these children, all of whom have been horribly shaken by this tragedy,” he said.