Friends' ‘seen laughing’ moments before being struck and killed by New York subway train
Police have launched an investigation after two friends were struck by a subway train while 'sitting on the track'.
Navam Kaul and Malaika Chitre were fatally struck at Spring Street station in New York City in the early hours on Sunday (13 September).
Officials suspect that the pair might not have realised that the southbound 4 train was hurtling directly towards them before it was too late, according to reports.
Haunting footage captured in the moments before the train station tragedy took place shows the friends appearing to huddle closely together on the tracks, just before a train pulls in.
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It collided with the pair at around 3.14am, police said, and both victims were subsequently pronounced dead at the scene.
Reports have been emerging about what transpired before Navam and Malaika - who are both said to be 24-years-old and from New Jersey - ended up on the tracks.
Speaking to the New York Post, law enforcement sources alleged that the person operating the train told her superiors that she noticed 'a man and woman sitting on the track'.
The driver claimed to have seen Navam and Malaika 'laughing' together as the train sped towards them, the publication reported.
An incident report obtained by The New York Daily News alleged that the operator said she saw 'the woman pulling the male towards her when the train came into contact'.
Despite attempting to stop the train, the driver is said to have been unable to brake in time.
Authorities are said to be looking into the possibility that they did not realise the imminent danger that they were in until it was too late.
It is currently unclear how or why they ended up on the tracks. However, the Post also alleged that sources said Navam was the first to appear there, before Malaika then followed him.
Dozens of passengers were evacuated from the train at Spring Street station in wake of the incident, local media claims.
Police are now investigating the circumstances surrounding the deaths of Navam and Malaika.
A neighbour of Navam's explained that the young lad was a financial analyst who was 'doing everything right', while noting that Malaika was also 'doing well'.
'Why on the track?'
"Good people doing so well, with their whole lives ahead of them," the resident told the Post. "It’s just so sad."
Navam and Malaika, an operations specialist at a pharmaceutical firm, are believed to be longtime friends who both attended Rutgers University in New Jersey.
Explaining they 'grew up in the same world', another pal said: "They’re all part of the same friends circle, the same South Asian group hanging out together, enjoying the same festivals."
An acquaintance of Malaika's then added: "I was shocked when I heard about this...It’s just so weird. I’m still not understanding: why on the track?"
LADbible has contacted the New York Police Department for comment.
Olivia Burke