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TagsBY ALICIA CRUZ
NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM
A crowd of subway riders tried to help a woman who jumped into the subway tracks to retrieve a gym bag she dropped, but then watched in horror as the train bore down on the woman who seemed frozen with fear.
The 3:15 p.m. northbound No. 6 train crushed Rose Mary Mankos, 48, as it entered the 77th Street Station Friday. The horrified train operator sounded his horn eight times and attempted to brake, but there just wasn't enough time.
Alfonso McGruder of the Bronx who witnessed the tragic accident said, "She tried to go under the platform because the train was bearing down on her. Then she tried to climb onto the platform, but she couldn't do that. Then she just froze."
"I think she just went into shock knowing that the train was seconds from hitting her. It looked like she just gave up," said McGruder.
People waiting on the platform screamed for Mankos to get under the platform, but she just froze in fear as she watched the train barreling towards her.The scene was like something out of a horror flick as Mankos lay with her head stuck between the train and the platform. Another witness, Andrew Pistella said people were screaming at the sight.
"You could see some woman with her head stuck in between the train [and the platform] and her arms sticking out. Some guy was screaming, 'is this real? Is this real?' It looked like a mannequin," said Pistella.
After learning of Mankos death, friends and family shared a remembrance of the woman they knew as a quiet woman who was well liked by many.
Elise Geltzer, a spokesperson for the Department of Legal Services at the New York State Office of General Services where Mankos worked as a state lawyer before leaving three years ago, remembered the New Jersey native as a respected woman whose work was excellent.
A neighbor of Mankos said she seemed to be dealing with personal issues and remarked that he saw her in the lobby of their Stuy Town apartment building "muttering to herself."
Rich Pinto, 41, said, "She definitely was not 100 percent there. It was undecipherable muttering and she looked distressed. I never got the idea that she was threatening, just not 100 percent there," said Pinto.
Mankos' father, who resides in North Bergen, N.J., said he did not know why his daughter jumped and was not aware of any mental health issues she was suffering from.
"I don't know why she jumped," he said. "I wish I could answer that. She didn't talk to me about any of her problems. I wouldn't know. She lives in New York. She has her own life. I didn't see her too often."
Robert Mankos was too grief stricken to claim his daughter's body. Instead, her brother, who resides in Pittsburgh came to New York to identify her remains.
NYC Transit spokesman Paul Fleuranges advised transit riders, " If you drop something on the tracks, do not attempt to retrieve it. Alert a transit employee or a police officer."
But, to say NYC has one of the worst subway systems is flat out wrong. We have the greatest subway system on the planet, and to say otherwise is just offensive. Whether you're talking about extensiveness, frequency of trains, speeds and dependability of the train cars, transfer options, express routes, late night/early morning service, whatever, there simply isn't another subway system that can compare. I mean, if you combined the number of stops of all the other subway systems in the USA, that number is only about 15 stations more than NYC.
Accidents happen in all walks of life, and people do stupid things. While unfortunate, let's not blame the subway system for people jumping on tracks to retrieve personal items they accidentally dropped.
NYC subway has its issues, sure. We could use a Second Ave. subway line, a Queens-to-Bronx line, a northern Manhattan crosstown line, a not-so-neglected G train line and a northern Queens line that connects to LaGuardia Airport, for example, but I wouldn't trade our system for any on this planet.
god bless,
a
After touring the world I have learned that New York City has one of the worst Subway systems in creations. Followed behind London NYC could use great improvements. Think.. If you have ever ridden the Air Train to the Airport.. This appears to be the system being implemented around the world. A glass wall keeps trash, people and other unwelcome items off the tracks . Not until the train arrives and opens its doors does the glass barrier open. No trash on the tracks, no accidental falls or suicidal jumps, no held trains due to people holding train doors, plus the ability to heat and cool the subway and subway station efficiently.
I guess I will have to keep dreaming.