NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- A 13-year old boy was struck and killed by a Long Island Rail Road train during the evening rush hour Friday, officials said.
1010 WINS AUDIO: Steve Kastenbaum Reports at the Scene
Friends of Ari Kraft's family tell 1010 WINS he with a group of friends painting graffiti on signal boxes west of the Forest Hills stations when he somehow fell into the path of a train headed to Huntington.
The victim was a student at Russell Sage Junior High School and lived with his Israeli-born mother.
The incident occurred around 5:40 p.m. near 67th Road and Austin Street. The boy was in the company of a friend, who notified the police, said Detective Kevin Czartoryski, a police spokesman.
The train, which carries about 1,000 people at that hour, was between the Woodside and Forest Hills stations in Queens, according to Susan McGowan, an LIRR spokeswoman.
Service was suspended for hours in both directions between Jamaica, Queens, and Pennsylvania Station in New York City. Limited eastbound service was restored on the eastbound trains two hours after the accident, and full service was restored with heavy delays by about 9 p.m., LIRR officials said.
The 5:17 p.m. train was scheduled to arrive Huntington at 6:21 p.m. but was delayed at the scene several hours as investigators worked.
The incident caused backups at Penn Station. McGowan said New York City Transit honored LIRR tickets to help ease the flow.
Photo courtesy of WNYW.
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