These Videos Predate the Recent Shooting Attack at the Brooklyn Subway
The Claim
The videos are related to the recent shooting attack at the Brooklyn subway in New York.
News posted on
Emerging story
Social media users posted footage purporting it was recently filmed during a water drain explosion in Times Square.
Misbar’s Analysis
Misbar has investigated the claim and found it to be misleading. The three videos are unrelated to the recent shooting attack at the New York subway and predate the incident.
Times Square Manhole Explosion Videos Shared as the Recent Subway Attack
The first video predates the shooting attack at the Brooklyn subway. It was posted on YouTube on April 11, 2022. The video originally shows a mass escape after a manhole explosion in Times Square in New York City, U.S.
The first video predates the shooting attack at the Brooklyn subway. It was posted on YouTube on April 11, 2022, as a mass escape after a manhole explosion in Times Square in New York City, USA.
The second video is also unrelated to the subway attack. The clip was uploaded online on April 11, which means it predates the shooting attack, which took place on April 12. The video depicts a manhole explosion in Times Square.
2015 Video Shared in relation to the Recent Manhole Explosion
The third clip the users circulated is old and was uploaded to YouTube in August 2015. According to CBS New York, the video depicts a manhole explosion in the Manhattan area of New York City. Based on our findings, the video is unrelated to the manhole cover explosion that occurred on April 11 in Times Square.
According to NBC New York, “Three manholes exploded in Times Square Sunday night, triggering fear as smoke rose from streets in the heart of Manhattan and sending crowds scrambling in any direction away from the loud bangs caused by the blasts.”
The Brooklyn Metro Station Shooting Attack’s Suspect Arrested
According to Al Jazeera sources, ten people were shot on April 12 inside a subway train in Brooklyn “after a man put on a gas mask, set off two smoke canisters and began shooting at terrified passengers.” The article mentioned that there were other people who got injured because of smoke inhalation or as they tried to flee the station.
On April 13, New York Police arrested a suspect they said opened fire on the Brooklyn subway train Tuesday morning. According to a USA Today report, “Frank R. James, 62, was arrested in Manhattan’s East Village after he had called himself into the city's ‘crime stoppers’ line and reported his location.”
