Two homeless men were found dead on the New York subway in a grim 11-hour period over the weekend, according to reports.
The New York Post say one of the victims, identified as a 56-year-old man, was discovered by transit workers at 9:30 p.m. on Friday at the 168th Street Station in Washington Heights.
“The homeless situation is out of control,” said a train operator identifying himself as Eddie. “You don’t even know if the man died of coronavirus.”
Mere hours later, on Saturday, passersby came across 61-year-old Robert Mangual “unconscious and unresponsive” at the Utica Avenue station in Brooklyn at 8:20 a.m. Paramedics were called but Mangual was pronounced dead at the scene.
The deaths raise questions over the presence of homeless people in the subway system, especially now that stay-at-home restrictions are ensuring passengers stay away.
“Two dead bodies in one 24-hour period is concerning to us,” said Yann Hicks, veteran MTA train operator and union rep. “Now there are two incidents in the past few days, and there could be more I don’t know about.
“What it adds up to for us is, what is the cause of the death of these two people? Is it coronavirus? Overdose?”
Last week, New York’s Governor Cuomo confirmed all train services would be stopped overnight between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. starting on May 6, so trains can be disinfected on a daily basis.
“These tragedies are heartbreaking and we are fully cooperating with the NYPD on their investigation,” said MTA spokesman Ken Lovett.
Indeed, such tragic loss of life is truly heartbreaking. Rest in peace to both of these poor souls.
Share this article on Facebook if you think more should be done to help the homeless.
