Aponte's last stop was at the Norwood-205th Street train station in the Bronx.

NYC Subway.Photo byWells BaumonUnsplash

On January 1, 2021, a 29-year-old guy from Queens was found dead on a D train. He had died from taking fentanyl.

Through a Freedom of Information Law request, a local news agency, The City, learned that 41 people died of drugs on the trains in New York City in 2021. One of them was Aponte's death.

According to the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, that number almost doubled the next year, when 79 people died from overdosing in train stops or on trains.

What Data Shows

In 2022, the number of overdose deaths in the subway system rose by 93%, which was much higher than the 12% rise in drug deaths in other parts of the city during the same period.

The latest Health Department location-based occurrence figures are from 2022. Officials said last year's data are "preliminary." They won't be disclosed until later this year. Official findings are usually released about a year later.

Even though the fire union and MTA agree that drug use on the city's enormous public transit system is a long-term problem that worsens in winter when more individuals seek shelter in stations and trains, that misunderstanding makes it hard to gain a clear picture.

Usually, firefighters and EMTs are the first ones to help the victims. However, the FDNY refused to give THE CITY any information on overdose calls in the train for any of the last five years, even though they were asked several times.

On the other hand, people who are there say they can see how bad the rise is.