A Massachusetts father of two who became trapped in a subway escalator died after being strangled by his own clothing, officials have revealed.
Steven McCluskey, 40, died following the horrifying accident at the MBTA’s Davis Station in Somerville on Feb. 27. This week, the Massachusetts Office of the Medical Examiner determined that he was strangled by his clothing after falling on the escalator.
The asphyxiation led to hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy, a type of brain injury that happens when oxygen or blood flow to the brain slows or stops.
Blunt force trauma was also listed as a contributing factor. His death was ruled accidental.
The incident happened around 5 a.m. as McCluskey was riding the escalator down to the platform, according to video footage shared by NBC affiliate WBTS.
When he reached the bottom, he fell and became trapped at the base of the moving escalator.
What happened next has left his family devastated.
For roughly 22 minutes, people were seen walking past him, according to footage reviewed by the outlet. Some appeared to pause briefly, but no one stopped long enough to get him help.
An MBTA worker eventually spotted McCluskey and hit the emergency stop button. When first responders arrived, the 40-year-old had no pulse.
He died 10 days later at a hospital.
His sister, Shannon Flaherty, has been blunt about the pain and disbelief her family feels over what the footage showed.
“I’ll be honest, I have never had such a lack of faith in humanity ever,” Flaherty previously told The Boston Globe.
“It has completely changed the perspective I have on people and human behavior,” she continued. “It is, for lack of a better word, despicable. I just can’t believe that so many people had the same inclination to just walk by.”
The MBTA previously described the tragedy as a “terrible accident” and reminded riders that escalators can be stopped in an emergency.
“It is important that the public knows that anyone can stop an escalator in an emergency by pressing the red button labeled ‘STOP’ at the top and bottom of each escalator,” the agency said in a statement obtained by PEOPLE. “They should also then immediately call 911.”
The agency added that MBTA personnel “respond swiftly to all emergencies” and do what they can to assist people and secure dangerous situations.
After McCluskey’s death, his sister remembered him as a talented carpenter and a devoted father to two boys, according to The Boston Globe.
But she said the most painful part remains the length of time her brother was left trapped and helpless.
“Regardless of what his cause of death was,” Flaherty previously told WBTS, “nobody should be there for 18 minutes, unconscious, being strangled by their own clothes, not able to yell for help.”