The worst fear of many New Yorkers came trueTuesdaymorning when a man fell a horrifying 20 feet through an open subway grate in Queens.
The man, who was not immediately identified, fell through the grate near 24-20 Jackson Avenue, in Long Island City, after opening it to retrieve his keys.
Amazingly, he survived – and was only treated for minor injuries.
But theNew Yorker Raymond Bethel, who spends his days walking the New York City streets as a messenger, says he’s wary of walking along the metal subway grates.
“You just don’t know what could happen,” Bethel said, adding he’s never witnessed a mishap.
If you do drop something down a subway grate, the MTA says you should alert a station agent or dial 511.
MTA spokesman Kevin Ortiz said grate accidents are “rare,” and the last accident was a few years ago.
The NYPD said no charges have been filed against the man. A police source said breaking a subway grate and entering MTA property could carry with it criminal mischeif and trespass.
Ortiz said the number of grates across the city wasn’t available, but that all are secured and locked.
The new Second Avenue subway line will not have no subway grates by design,
