Thursday, June 2, 2011

Condolence Board for Young Woman killed at 77th Street

My deepest condolences go out to the friends family of Fatoumata Diallo, 21, who died just after 3:00 yesterday after falling on the local tracks of the 77th St. Lexington Ave. line station. The young woman was a bright and beautiful Bronx native from Ghana, studying to be a doctor. Her family believes that she passed out from the heat, as she had done so in the past.
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Reading the local news can make your heart so heavy. Yesterday, when the 6 train was "delayed due to an earlier incident", I was waiting at Union Square. The crowds were getting restless, people were pushing on the platform. When a small war of words broke out on my uptown 6 due to pushing, I knew the cause and shared it, we were all cramped in here because a young woman probably fainted in this hot weather and died on the track. A shudder went through the crowd.

Here are some responses on comment sites around the internet. We, in New York, feel these things personally.

"This was a tragic day. First reports were that it was a child who fell into the tracks and the mother jumped in rescue the child and they were both killed. It was news that left those of us on the sidewalk utterly devastated and saddened. It wasn't until the news crews showed that people finally learned what really had happened. It has been brutally hot in the city and tens times worse on the tracks. This is the second death at this station in a year and yet the MTA has closed a both. Not that they would have been able to prevent it but if it would be nice to know that if there was a situation that someone was there to send out an alert for approachin­g trains. Such an incredibly sad story. Heart felt prayers to her family."
--Corsaire

"A friend of mine, lost her brother this way, he fell onto the tracks many years ago and to this day they don't know if he jumped or it was an accident. A lot of people like to look down the tunnel to see if a train is coming. It won't make the train come any faster if you do that. I like the new system of an electronic alert with the ETA of your train."
--waldimore

"I am so sorry to hear this. must be really tough for her family during this difficult time. My thoughts and prayers go out to her family and friends.She was studying medicine and wanted to be a doctor so she can help others."
-- nyyankeesfan

"I'll be always missing you honey...you were so full of joy and life! May u rest in peace!
Loveeee uuu 4ever sweetheart!"
--Sona Leno, from London

2 comments:

  1. I was there yesterday and it was horribly traumatizing. That poor girl: I can't believe it. The shock still hasn't past and there isn't 1 minute that goes by where I don't think about her.

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  2. I was there on the train all we felt was a big thump and the lights were flickering on and off and we all whispering what happened, and some lady says in a joking matter ooh someone must of gotten hit and it was true it was very traumatizing as well for the children who witness it.

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