While it’s hard to determine what motivates people to trespass on train tracks, it is known that fatalities have occurred in collisions involving trains and pedestrians. According to the Federal Railroad Administration, in 2018, there were a total of 571 trespassing fatalities nationwide. California garnered the largest share of these fatalities, with 123. New York came in second with 38 fatalities. In New York, it is thought that about 40% of these fatalities are suicides. A very small percentage are homicides. The rest is made up by people who walk the train tracks or jump onto the tracks to retrieve items they dropped.
ABC 7 New York reports that a man has died and his daughter was hurt when he jumped in front of a train in the Bronx.
The accident happened just after 8 a.m. Monday at Jerome Avenue and West Kingsbridge Road.
According to the NYPD, 45-year-old Fernando Balbuena-Flores jumped onto the tracks while holding his daughter. He was hit by a southbound 4 train. Medics who arrived on the scene pronounced him dead.
The child, miraculously, found a safe space and was not struck by the train. She was taken to the hospital to receive treatment for scratches.
The platform was swarming with commuters who attempted to wave down the driver of the train as it approached. Unfortunately, the train was unable to be stopped.
Witnesses said that the man was on the phone before he jumped. He was telling his wife that he was going to take his daughter to school and told her that he loved her. Neighbors said that Balbuena-Flores was a quiet man who suffered from depression and was on and off medication.
The train operator has 20 years of experience and was treated for trauma.
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