Coroner: Fall May Not Have Killed Woman in NYC Subway

The tragic death of a young mother in a New York City subway station may have been the result of a medical condition, not her fall down the stairs at the 7th Avenue subway station, the coroner says. Dr. Barbara Sampson, the city's chief medical examiner, tells NBC that Malaysia Goodson's cause of death has not been determined, but "there is no significant trauma, and this fatality appears to be related to a pre-existing medical condition." The 22-year-old Connecticut resident was found unresponsive on the station platform Monday night. Authorities say she fell while trying to carry her 1-year-old daughter and a stroller down the stairs. The girl, Rhylee, was not injured.

Sampson did not disclose what condition Goodson suffered from, though family members say she had a thyroid condition and had complained about headaches the day before her death, the New York Post reports. Whatever the cause, the death has brought renewed attention to accessibility issues in the nation's most extensive subway system, where only around a quarter of the 472 stations have elevators. "The conditions of our train stations are a life threatening issue," tweeted state Sen. Jessica Ramos. "We need increased accessibility in every station." A Metropolitan Transportation Authority spokesperson says plans are in place to add at least 50 elevators to stations by 2024. (More New York City subway stories.)