Wiley Jawhary of FOX 5 San Diego opened his report with a blunt reality that’s getting harder to ignore: the race for likes and views is pushing some people into stunts that are straight-up dangerous and life-threatening.
Anchors Zara Barker and Phil Blauer introduced the video the way most viewers probably felt in the moment – shocked that anyone would even try it. They said two real-life “subway surfers” were caught riding on top of a COASTER train, and that the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department got involved after it was all captured on video.
Jawhary said sheriff’s deputies were told two individuals were spotted on top of a moving COASTER train Friday evening. He stressed that it wasn’t just reckless, it was illegal.
And the part that’s hard to shake is how casual it looked on camera. One person was lying down. One person was standing up. Jawhary said it seemed like they were filming, almost like it was content first, danger second.
A Sunset Walk Turns Into A Double Take
Jawhary tracked down the man behind the camera, Kevin Graham, and Graham’s description makes the scene feel even stranger. Graham told Jawhary he was out watching the sunset when a train rolled by and he “pan[ed] over” and suddenly saw what looked like “two kids,” or at least young people, on top of the train.
Graham told Jawhary one was lying down and the other was standing, and to him it looked like they were filming each other while the train was moving. That detail alone tells you this wasn’t a mistake or somebody clinging on for dear life.
Graham said he had to do a “double take” because his brain didn’t want to accept what his eyes were seeing. He told Jawhary he pulled out his phone and started recording because he honestly didn’t think anyone would believe him otherwise.
That’s the modern world in a sentence. Something unbelievable happens, and the first instinct is, “If I don’t film it, it didn’t happen.”
Jawhary didn’t treat Graham like a rubbernecker, either. He framed him as a regular commuter-area guy who happened to be in the right place to capture something that could have ended in disaster.
And it’s worth saying out loud: the person filming isn’t the person creating the risk. Graham recorded what was already unfolding. The stunt itself was the danger.
Deputies Respond After Multiple Calls
Jawhary reported that deputies with the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office received multiple calls about what people were seeing. According to Jawhary, callers reported two people riding on top of a northbound COASTER train as it moved toward Del Mar.
By the time deputies got there, Jawhary said the two individuals had already climbed off the train and left the area. That detail makes it feel planned, like they had a start point, an exit point, and probably a “post it online” point.
Jawhary said that after a search, both were found in Solana Beach. In other words, they didn’t vanish into thin air. Deputies tracked them down.
North County Transit District Chief of Staff Mary Dover gave a very specific rundown. She said the two got on at Sorrento Valley Station and got off at the Solana Beach Station.
She didn’t sound amused. She called it “incredibly dangerous” and said officials strongly discourage anyone from doing this going forward.
Jawhary also said authorities later confirmed the two people were adults, not kids, and that they were arrested for trespassing on railroad property.
That matters, because it changes the tone. This wasn’t teenagers doing something impulsive after school. Jawhary’s reporting points to adults making an adult decision, and getting adult consequences.
“It’s Not Worth Your Life”
Jawhary said officials believed the stunt was done for social media, and Mary Dover didn’t dance around it. She warned it’s not worth the risk, not worth the chance of going viral, and not worth “your 15 minutes of fame.”
She also added a second warning that a lot of people ignore until it’s too late: it’s not worth any legal action that authorities might take as a result.
That’s the part some stunt-chasers don’t factor in. They think the worst case is embarrassment or a lecture. In Jawhary’s report, the message is the opposite: you can lose your freedom, your money, and your future plans over a few seconds of video.
Graham also pushed back on the whole clout mindset, but in a calmer, more personal way. He told Jawhary that doing anything “for views online” is a slippery slope, and that people should focus on things they’re actually passionate about instead of chasing empty clicks.
That’s a polite way of saying something harsh: if you have to risk your life to feel interesting, the problem isn’t your content. It’s your compass.
Jawhary, for his part, summed it up plainly. He called the stunt very dangerous and “not wise to say the least.”
A Fast Train And A Fragile Human Body
One detail Jawhary highlighted should’ve snapped everyone back to reality: he said these COASTER trains can travel up to 90 miles per hour.
At that speed, there’s no such thing as a “little slip.” There’s only gravity and impact.
Even without getting graphic, the math is ugly. A stumble, a sudden jerk, a shift in balance, or a surprise jolt from the train, and you’re not just falling – you’re being thrown.
And trains aren’t smooth floating platforms. They rattle. They sway. They hit uneven track. They pass by poles, signs, bridges, and other fixed objects that don’t move an inch out of your way.
Jawhary didn’t have to list every possible outcome for the warning to land. The fact that transit officials and deputies reacted at all tells you they’ve seen enough to know how quickly “a stunt” becomes “a fatal call.”
This is where my own opinion kicks in: social media has trained too many people to treat survival like it’s negotiable. If you live through it, it becomes “content.” If you don’t, it becomes a headline and a candlelight vigil.
And it’s not just the surfer at risk. Jawhary’s reporting makes it clear the danger spreads outward. If someone falls near tracks, now you’ve got emergency stops, panicked passengers, first responders running toward a scene, and trauma that sticks with strangers for years.
It’s selfish danger, because the blast radius is bigger than the person doing it.
The Bigger Pattern Behind A Smaller Clip
Jawhary framed this as part of a wider problem, not a one-off stunt. He put it in the context of a “race for likes and views,” where the reward is attention and the cost can be a life.
He also made clear this isn’t just a harmless prank. It’s illegal. Deputies got involved. People called 911. A search happened. Arrests happened.
And that’s the part I wish more people understood: the internet doesn’t get to vote your consequences away. You can rack up views and still get cuffs.
Zara Barker and Phil Blauer’s intro hinted at another truth too – this could have been much worse. That’s not dramatic language. That’s the quiet fear underneath the whole story: if the timing had been slightly different, if the train had hit a rougher stretch, if a person had lost balance at the wrong moment, this report wouldn’t be about arrests.
It would be about a recovery.
Jawhary’s report ends where it should end: with accountability. Deputies say the two were arrested for trespassing on railroad property, and the message from officials is clear—don’t do it, don’t copy it, and don’t confuse “viral” with “invincible.”
Because the truth is, the train doesn’t care why you climbed up there. The track doesn’t care how many likes you wanted. And gravity doesn’t care if you thought you were filming something cool.
A former park ranger and wildlife conservationist, Lisa’s passion for survival started with her deep connection to nature. Raised on a small farm in northern Wisconsin, she learned how to grow her own food, raise livestock, and live off the land. Lisa is our dedicated Second Amendment news writer and also focuses on homesteading, natural remedies, and survival strategies. Lisa aims to help others live more sustainably and prepare for the unexpected.
