A 37-year-old man ended his train trip atop a Metro-North car at the Pelham station, where he fell or was pulled from the train's roof, while on fire and suffering from burns after coming into contact with a high voltage power cable. Accounts of the incident differ, but do agree on the fact that the adventurer was named Eric Chavez, he suffered burns on his body, and that it was somewhat of a miracle that he was alive.
MTA officials are unclear on how Chavez got atop the train heading north out of Grand Central Terminal, but when the commuter railroad was pulling into the Pelham station, the electricity shorted out and the train came to a halt. WNBC reports that rescue workers had to pull Chavez from the roof of the car with fiberglass poles because his body was still electrified. According to the New York Post, however, passengers saw Chavez fall from the roof of the train around 7 p.m. after a loud boom as the train's lights flickered. Witnesses said that the man seemed completely unfazed after toppling from the rooftop, although his jacket was on fire.
MTA workers said that the electrified equipment that Chavez may have come into contact with carries between 11,000 and 14,000 volts. They're not sure how he gained access to the roof of the Metro-North car. He's being treated at Jacobi Hospital in the Bronx for burns to his arm and back.
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