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Video Shows More Than 20-Minute Delay Before Escalator Was Stopped in Fatal MBTA Fall

Footage raises questions about emergency response, prompting separate MBTA review alongside a Middlesex County probe.

Overview

  • A 40-year-old man, Steven McCluskey, became trapped when his clothing was caught at the bottom of an escalator at Davis Station and later died at Massachusetts General Hospital after being hospitalized.
  • Surveillance video obtained by The Boston Globe shows the escalator was not stopped until about 5:21 a.m., more than 20 minutes after the fall on Feb. 27, and early-morning riders are seen walking past the injured man.
  • First responders reported McCluskey’s shirt was tightly lodged and constricted his airway, crews used repeated CPR and Narcan to restore a pulse, and he ultimately died on March 9.
  • The MBTA says staff had started the escalators that morning, post-incident inspections found no mechanical defects, and the agency emphasized that anyone can press a red 'STOP' button at the top or bottom to halt an escalator in an emergency.
  • The Middlesex County District Attorney’s Office has an open investigation pending a formal ruling on cause and manner of death, and the family has demanded answers about station staffing and bystander inaction with public outrage building over the footage.