Michelle L. Price, Associated Press Published Friday, April 15, 2022, 3:14 PM EDT Last Updated on Friday, April 15, 2022, 5:06 PM EDT
NEW YORK (AP) – When smoke bombs and bullets were dropped on a subway full of morning commuters as they crawled to a Brooklyn bus stop, train driver David Artis could not hear the shots.
His first indication that something was wrong was when passengers gathered near the operator’s cab door to report chaos, a car back.
Artis said after a moment of shock, his thoughts quickly shifted from “Oh my God!” Concern for his passengers. He relies on his urgent preparation.
“It simply came to our notice then. Get them out, “he said on Friday after he and his fellow transit workers were honored by the mayor for their response to Tuesday’s shooting.
After a few minutes of lightning-fast solutions, Artis and train conductor Raven Haynes called the attack on the radio, opened the train’s doors and evacuated all passengers to another train on the same platform, then began helping the wounded.
Photos and videos taken by the passengers captured the couple calmly but authoritatively picking up stunned passengers to the other train, which is receding.
“This week, New York has shown the world what our city has always been, courage, heroism, quick thinking and determination,” said Mayor Eric Adams.
Adams, who appeared at the ceremony at the town hall in practice because he was isolated after giving a positive test for COVID-19, made workers present proclamations on Friday to honor their heroism.
The ceremony took place a day after the man responsible for the massacre, Frank James, appeared in court in the federal court building, a few stops up the line from the site of the attack.
Prosecutors say he dressed as a construction worker and fired smoke grenades, then pulled out a gun and fired 33 shots, reloading once before his gun hit him.
Subway officials said they did not see the armed man in the crowd amid the chaos and were simply focused on taking the people out.
“I shouted at the people, ‘Get on the train!’ Get on the train! Get on the train! ”Said Artis.
Haynes, the conductor, said she was not afraid because she had worked at an airport a few years ago to join the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and was already used to reacting to unforeseen situations.
“I cannot stress enough the importance of stoicism in a time of chaos. “Your calm demeanor helps your passengers stay calm, which helps them get out as safely and quickly as possible,” she said.
The victims of the shooting are between 16 and 60 years old. Most of the wounds are on the legs, back and buttocks. A 16-year-old boy was shot in the arm. They are all expected to survive.
As the wounded passengers limped toward the platform, several knelt to help the wounded. One took off his shirt to create a turnstile for someone shot in the leg.
Artis said that when he checked the subway car to make sure it was empty, he found blood on the floor, luggage left by the shooter and shell casings, which he said he immediately told transit operators about to be able to call the police.
Haynes describes the moment she filmed the scene, just after directing the passengers to escape.
“I finally looked down at the front of the train and saw the whole second car engulfed in smoke, along with the entire north side of the platform,” she said.
Investigators said in confusion, James slipped into the rescue train with the other passengers, disembarking from one station after dropping the construction worker’s equipment and helmet.
He was arrested a day later in Manhattan after a nationwide search that ended shortly after he called a police line and identified his whereabouts.
New York police said on Friday that a $ 50,000 reward for information leading to the capture of James would be divided equally between five people whose advice he said “directly contributed to the arrest”. As the tip-off process was anonymous, the department did not disclose the names of the recipients of the prize money provided by the New York Police Foundation, a non-profit organization that supports the NYPD, MTA and the Transit Workers’ Union.
So much is still unknown about the motives behind Tuesday’s shooting, as the suspect’s previous feuds with the law are under investigation.
His first contact with law enforcement was when he was fired from his maintenance job at Bridgeway Behavioral Health Services in Elizabeth, New Jersey, where he was a client more than 15 years ago, according to a statement from the organization’s chief executive.
“During his termination, we referred Mr. James for additional mental health services and contacted the Elizabeth Police Department, New Jersey, which conducted its own investigation. He hasn’t been involved with our organization since, “said Corey Storch, Bridgeway’s chief executive.
“This devastating incident underscores the urgent need to increase access to mental health care and follow-up services for those in crisis so that future acts of violence can be avoided,” Storch said.
During a brief appearance in court on Thursday, Assistant Attorney General Sarah K. Winick said the deliberate, carefully planned attack on James “terrorizes the victims and our entire city.”
James was sentenced to prison without bail. At the request of James’ lawyers, Magistrate Roan Mann said he would ask for James to receive “psychiatric attention”.
Hourari Bencada, a passenger who was shot in the leg, said in an interview with the Associated Press that he was just steps away from the shooter.
Benkada said he was listening to music in his headphones when the smoke began to fill the car, and he thought it was a small fire.
But the smoke “continued to escalate to black, black smoke like 9/11,” he said, “and the whole train was like tar.”
Benkada said he heard gunshots and screams and tried to protect a pregnant woman from being hit during the chaos, and as people pushed forward, a shot tore in his knee.
Investigators searched dozens of videos that James posted on social media as they worked to determine the motive for the shooting. The videos include swear words about racism, public attitudes toward blacks, homelessness and violence.
The New York-born James also discussed his history of psychiatric treatment and complained about how the mayor of New York dealt with homeless people on the subway and gun violence. He also spoke of shooting at people, prosecutors said in court documents.
Investigators say James, who recently left Milwaukee and lived on a short-term lease in Philadelphia, rented a U-Haul van in Philadelphia and drove it to New York hours before the shooting.
Associated Press authors Michael R. Sisak, Karen Matthews and Bobby Caina Calvan of New York and Claudia Lauer of Philadelphia contributed to this report.
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