A Brooklyn man died in a horrific subway accident last night after jumping in front of a train after a young woman who plunged to the tracks to retrieve her fallen jacket.
Both Jose Gomez, 29, and Beatriz Briceno, 19, were struck last night by a northbound N train near 36th Avenue in Astoria, Queens around 10:40 p.m., police said.
Firefighters and medics responding to the gruesome scene struggled to pull the duo — pinned to the elevated tracks by the N train — from underneath the third car.
“There was blood dripping all over and a lot of frantic movement underneath the train as firefighters tried to get them out,” said Astoria resident Bruce Williams.
“They brought the man down in front of me. The firemen were holding the backboard and medics were pumping the guy as they carried him. They kept pumping him until the ambulance came,” Williams said.
Gomez was pronounced dead at Elmhurst Hospital, officials said. Briceno survived the night and was in serious but stable condition at the hospital, according to authorities.
Briceno moved to the city from Connecticut about a year ago after graduating from high school. She was working in a coffee shop and living with a young cousin, her family said.
Authorities said it was unclear how Briceno and Gomez knew each other, but apparently were traveling together last night, according to eyewitness reports.
Police sources said the two may have been drinking and there were early indications alcohol played a role in the tragedy, which was sparked by the young girl’s decision to jump onto the elevated tracks to pick up her fallen jacket.
Briceno’s stepmother said they didn’t recognize the name of the young man who died trying to save her daughter’s life.
Gomez’s devastated parents were too emotional to talk at the family’s Brooklyn apartment. Gomez’s sister Kimberli described her brother as “the best, very friendly, he always wanted to help.
“We only know what the police told us, that he died trying to help someone,” she said.
Additional reporting by Georgette Roberts and Jennifer Bain