A daredevil teenager fell down a shaft on the Ed Koch-Queensboro Bridge on Monday night, prompting a massive rescue effort and sparking mass panic among eyewitnesses.
According to police sources, the span across the East River was flooded with emergency vehicles just before 9 p.m. on Feb. 16 after a 16-year-old boy lost his footing while attempting to climb the bridge. Sources reported that he fell some 50 feet.
The Fire Department used a series of pulleys and ropes to hoist the youngster from inside the bridge to safety. EMS rushed him to Weill Cornell Medical Center, where he was listed in stable condition.
Cops believe the boy was attempting some kind of social media challenge when he tumbled. Instagram accounts associated with the teenager and his friends showed youths fleeing in a panic after he had fallen down the shaft.
“He dead fell,” one person could be heard saying as he filmed down the shaft, focusing in on a shoe.
“Whoever leaves their manz deserves to rot [sic] hope yall get charged to the fullest extent and rot in prison yall,” one person wrote on an Instagram story.
These same accounts showed the youths exploring subway tunnels and riding on the outside trains, another dangerous teenage challenge known as “subway surfing.”
In the hours since Monday night’s incident, many of the accounts have been purged of images and videos.
Meanwhile, locals watching the flashing red and blue emergency lights from their windows panicked over the sight.
“What’s happening?” one person wrote on the Citizen app. “Why is the bridge filled with so many ambulances?” another person wrote.
