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The boy suffered a “serious but non-life-threatening head injury,” authorities say.
An MBTA Red Line train heading toward North Quincy. Lane Turner/The Boston Globe
A 12-year-old boy sustained serious injuries early Tuesday morning after falling while attempting to “train surf” on a Red Line car, MBTA Transit Police said.
The boy got onto a train at the JFK/UMass station in Dorchester shortly before 1 a.m. and afterwards fell from the car onto the ground, Transit Police Superintendent Richard Sullivan said in a statement.
The boy suffered a “serious but non-life-threatening head injury,” according to Sullivan.
The incident remains under investigation, authorities said.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with this child, and it is our sincere hope he makes a full recovery,” Sullivan said.
Train surfing is not a new phenomenon, and authorities have long warned of dangers regarding the activity.
Back in 2014, a man was issued a summons for train surfing on a Worcester-bound commuter train, and a teenager faced charges after allegedly “surfing” the Orange Line.
More recently, in 2023, a video of a man standing on top of a train went viral, earning him the nickname “the Red Line surfer.” Later that year, the MBTA Transit Police began investigating two people who were captured on video attempting stunts while riding on top of a Red Line train.
“This incident underscores the inherent extreme danger of ‘Train Surfing,’” Sullivan said. “It could literally cost you your life.”
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