Manhattan transit worker killed by subway train
Nov. 29 (UPI) -- A Manhattan MTA track worker was killed just after midnight Tuesday when he was hit and dragged by an MTA train south of the 34th Street-Herald Square station.
Metropolitan Transit Authority Chair and CEO Janno Lieber said, "Our folks were at the hospital last night, with the worker's family. Obviously they are very much in our thoughts right now. It's a difficult morning, most of all, for those of us close to our colleague."
Hilarion Joseph, 54, was working in a cleaning crew just before 12:15 a.m. when the accident happened.
The crew was about 150 feet south fo the 34th Street-Herald Square station when a northbound D train passing on the express track caught Joseph, dragging him beneath the wheels. He died about an hour later at Bellevue hospital.
The MTA ordered all track workers to go to an eight-hour special safety briefing on track safety starting Wednesday, according to a department bulletin obtained by the New York Daily News.
Scheduled non-emergency transit work was canceled for 24 hours after Jospeh was killed.
The accident is under investigation.
Richard Davis, president of Transit Workers Union Local 100, said in a statement, "It is with heavy hearts that we share the unfortunate news that our fellow member was involved in a tragic incident with a train. Please keep his family and friends in your prayers during this difficult time."
