A tragic game
Teen plunges to death, pal hurt while jumping
A GAME OF roof hopping turned deadly in Brooklyn Friday, when two boys fell short of their destination and plummeted into an alleyway, police said.
A 13-year-old boy was killed and his 15-year-old friend was critically injured as they tried to leap the seven-foot gap between two buildings on Grove St. in Bushwick at 5:30 p.m., cops said.
Investigators say the pair plunged down four stories — or 40 feet.
The 13-year-old — whose name was not released — was rushed him to Kings County Hospital but could not be saved.
His older pal survived the fall, and was at the same hospital in serious condition Friday night, with injuries to his pelvis, police said.
One witness said it appeared the 15-year-old boy landed on top of the younger one.
“It was boom, boom, the whole building shook,” said a cab driver named Luis who lives next door. “It looked like both fell face-first,” he added.
It was a horrific sight to see the boys carried into an ambulance from the basement in the rear of the brick building, witnesses said.
The older boy was still moving, and medics had cut off his clothes, one witness explained.
“He was still breathing in his underwear,” said Alphea Clarke, 47, a caretaker at a group home next door.
Detectives tried to track down the kids’ families, as neither boy lived in the building they fell from, police said.
Neighbors said local teens who don’t live there often climb to the top of 57-59 Grove St. and hang out, ignoring a sign posted at the front door warning that “residents only” are allowed inside.
A couch could be seen set up on the roof near where the boys jumped.