A 13-year-old boy in Brazil had a miraculous escape after being electrocuted twice while attempting to surf atop a moving train, as seen in a distressing video captured at Rio de Janeiro’s Anchieta Station. The footage reveals the teenager’s lifeless body sprawled on the train’s roof, his legs hanging over the side, as panicked onlookers watch from the platform below.
A courageous bystander is seen climbing the train car to rescue the boy, narrowly avoiding the live wire himself amid screams of warning from the crowd below. The rescuer manages to grab the boy’s arm, but in doing so, the teenager comes into contact with the live wire for a second time, resulting in a fiery explosion and another severe shock. This forces the rescuer to abandon his attempt.
The unidentified boy was eventually freed and rushed to Albert Schweitzer Municipal Hospital in Realengo. He was reported to be in serious condition the following morning.
Supervia, the Brazilian train company operating the locomotive, issued a stern warning against train surfing, a perilous trend popularized on social media. This reckless act has already claimed six lives in New York City this year alone. The company emphasized that such actions not only endanger the individuals involved but also compromise the safety of all passengers and disrupt railway operations.
The company urged everyone, including passengers and pedestrians, to respect safety rules and called for a collective effort to prevent such tragedies and eliminate this hazardous practice. Supervia also cautioned passengers against touching or attempting to remove equipment due to the high voltage of electricity.
In a similar vein, officials from New York City’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) have implored parents to monitor their children to prevent them from participating in this deadly trend. The majority of these so-called “subway surfers” are teenagers who film themselves performing the stunt for online recognition.
Last year, the MTA launched a public service announcement initiative titled “Ride Inside, Stay Alive,” featuring local students urging their peers not to engage in dangerous subway surfing. The transit agency has also been pressuring social media platforms to remove videos of subway surfing, which often go viral and inspire more teenagers to take part in this risky behavior.