FORDHAM — Fordham Prep will offer grief counseling to all members of the school community in the wake of two students being killed by Metro-North trains in less than a month.
A sophomore at the all-male Catholic school in The Bronx was killed on the tracks Monday afternoon when a Metro-North train hit him at the Botanical Garden station, just a few weeks after another sophomore was fatally hit by a train at the Philipse Manor station, according to officials and reports.
“The sudden and tragic death of a member of our sophomore class last evening has deeply shocked and saddened the entire Fordham Prep community," Rev. Christopher Devron, president of the school, said in a statement. "We are in close contact with the young man’s family and have assured them that our prayers, sympathy and support are with them in their time of need."
The victim was hit roughly 3:30 p.m. by a train traveling northbound on the New Haven line, according to the MTA.
The school will provide grief counseling and trained experts for its students, faculty, staff and parents, and it will hold a meeting for parents as well, where specialists and members of the school's crisis team will address their questions and concerns, according to Devron.
Brendan, a student at Fordham Prep who declined to give his last name, said he was upset about the death of his classmate but grateful for how well the school's faculty had handled it.
"The teachers helped us a lot," he said. "They had support groups if anyone needed it."
Students at the school spent part of their day on Tuesday praying for the victim's family, and all of his teachers asked how everyone was doing during classes, he said.
Although Fordham Prep has now seen two deaths within the past month, Brendan said he did not think the school itself was a factor in either of them.
"I think it was something personal," he said. "I don't think it had anything to do with the school."
