NYC subway passenger lies on subway floor screaming and clawing inside his pants. Then 911 is immediately called

A man riding a New York City subway ended up on the train floor. He was screaming and clawing at his own body while other riders watched. Footage of the moment shows him twisting on the floor and repeatedly scratching himself.

The video was posted on TikTok by an account called shermquqxwu. At several points, he pushes his hands inside his pants. Passengers nearby pull back and keep their distance.

The video does not show what caused the episode. It only picks up once he is already on the floor. Several riders appeared unsure how to respond. According to the clip’s narration, one passenger “records the scene” while someone else “calls 911.”

Police arrive as the man appears calmer

By the time officers arrived, the man was no longer on the floor. He was sitting quietly in a seat and appeared considerably calmer than he had been earlier. The narration says police “speak with him” before “eventually escorting him off the train.”

That change in behavior became one of the main points of discussion in the comments. Some viewers said staying back and calling for help was the smart move. “Wait for police what if he had a knife,” one person wrote.

Others made the same case more forcefully. “You absolutely do NOT get within striking distance of something like this. Film it and call 911 is exactly the right move,” one comment read. One rider faced a similar choice after seeing a mother berating her daughter on a different NYC train and chose to step in rather than simply watch.

Not everyone framed it as a safety question. A few focused on the man himself rather than how passengers acted. “He needs help,” one commenter wrote.

The video never confirms what was actually happening to him. It does not say whether he was sick or experiencing some kind of distress. Passengers in the clip also appear unsure about what they are seeing.

The same uncertainty can play out far beyond a subway car. A couple once assumed an older woman watching them through a window was suspicious, only to realize she actually needed their help. In this case, the man was taken off the train with police, but the video does not show what happened to him afterward. The clip ends with officers walking him through the station.