The deadly TikTok trend known as “subway surfing” has taken two more young lives in New York City. Two girls — 12-year-old Zemfira Mukhtarov and 13-year-old Ebba Morina — were found dead early Friday morning after allegedly attempting the dangerous challenge.
According to The New York Post, police received a report around 3:10 a.m. on October 4, when the bodies were discovered on top of a subway train in Brooklyn. Investigators believe the pair had joined a group of teens earlier that night to film themselves participating in the viral subway surfing trend — which involves climbing on top of moving trains to record daring videos.
Zemfira’s social media accounts revealed that she had previously posted several risky videos, including one where she lay on train tracks and filmed the underside of a moving train. Her devastated mother told reporters that she had repeatedly warned her daughter about the dangers of such stunts — only to learn of her death through news coverage the next morning.
Subway surfing has become increasingly deadly in recent years as young thrill-seekers chase viral fame on TikTok and other platforms. Official data shows that while there were only five related deaths between 2018 and 2022, the numbers have since surged — with five deaths in 2023, six in 2024, and five more reported so far in 2025.
Authorities are once again urging parents to monitor their children’s online activity and warn them about the fatal risks of imitating viral stunts.
