Fault in Door Safety System Cited in Boston Subway Death

BOSTON (AP) — A passenger door on a Boston subway car did not function properly when a man got his arm stuck in it and was dragged to his death last month, federal investigators said Monday.

The trains are equipped with safety features to prevent them from moving when the doors are obstructed, the National Transportation Safety Board wrote in the preliminary report.

“NTSB investigators examined and tested the railcar involved after the accident, identifying a fault in a local door control system that enabled the train to move with the door obstructed,” the report said.

The man, identified by local authorities as Robinson Lalin, 39, of Boston, died around 12:30 a.m. April 12 as he exited the six-car Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Red Line train at the Broadway Station.

“In the attempt to exit the train, the passenger’s right arm was trapped in the door,” the NTSB report said. “The train departed the station, dragging the passenger along the platform about 105 feet and onto the surface below, near the tracks.”

He was pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said.

The MBTA inspected the doors on other railcars in the fleet and reported no other similar faults, the NTSB said.

The railcar and the train operator remain out of service, an MBTA spokesperson said.

The investigation is ongoing. The NTSB has so far examined and tested the train equipment, reviewed security video, observed train operations, conducted interviews, and performed sight-distance observations. The investigation will now focus on passenger train equipment and operating procedures.

The NTSB said Monday’s report is preliminary and subject to change.

There have been other safety issues with the MBTA in the past year. Nine people were injured in September when an escalator at the Back Bay Station malfunctioned, and more than two dozen went to the hospital last July when a Green Line train rear-ended another trolley.