NEW YORK (PIX11) -- Subway surfing has become an increasing concern for families as deaths have already surpassed totals from last year, according to police data.
At least six people have died subway surfing this year, whereas last year, five people died subway surfing citywide, according to the NYPD.
Adolfo Sanabria was full of life, his family told PIX11 News. Now, they hold onto cherished memories and anything that brings his grieving mother closer to her son.
Milene Sorzano tightly held his towel at their Queens home, quietly crying and recalling how she warned the 13-year-old eight months ago not to subway surf anymore.
Sorzano says she found videos on his phone showing him riding on top of trains that he posted to social media.
His parents sought help from his school and social workers but Adolfo was killed last Wednesday as part of the tragic trend.
"It's a joyride that ends with nothing - no joy at all. And families will continue to deal with it indefinitely."
On Sunday night, it happened again.
Krystel Romero died while her friend was left clinging to life. The pre-teen girls fell from a 7 train in Corona and were run over.
The MTA and NYPD have been doing enforcement blitzes and campaigns to alert kids to the dead stunts. Now cops are using drones over elevated train lines, resulting in 181 arrests this year, up 53 percent from last year.
Officials are hitting the panic button for parents as six children have died so far this year, half of them in the last month.
It is such a point of crisis that the New York Attorney General is suing TikTok citing in part the "digital nicotine" of the platform that challenges children to engage in harmful activities.
TikTok fired back, saying some of the claims were inaccurate and misleading.
However, this mother who lost her little boy knows the toll it's taken.
English (US) ·