A young woman reminded people of the low-key panic one feels while walking home alone at midnight and surviving the late-night dangers of the city.
Jessica McGirr from Ireland now lives in the concrete jungle of New York and has been documenting her experiences in the city that never sleeps.
In a recent video, she gave almost minute-to-minute updates of how frightened she was at different points of her commute back home.
Along every stage of her journey, the 24-year-old woman shared her “scared level” out of 10. The score never dropped to zero until she reached home.
Jessica McGirr moved to Ireland from New York and recently documented her nighttime commute
“Walk home alone with me at midnight in NYC,” began the video that garnered nearly 230K views..
Giving an update at 12:05 a.m., Jessica said the streets were quiet.
“It’s very bright and peaceful this time of night,” so her “scared level” was at a comfortable “1/10.”
However, the rating changed within a matter of minutes as she was captured walking down a “tunnel of doom” at 12:08 a.m.
The 24-year-old woman gave constant updates about her late night journey in New York City
“I hate this blocked sidewalk tunnel of doom. Scared level 7/10,” the text said.
On the other side of the tunnel was another street, where she once again found lots of people walking about and driving around.
“No one sus about so far. Scared Level: 1/10,” she said.
As she walked on, the young adult went on “high alert” when she made her way to the subway station at 12:13 a.m.
“Descending into the hole, Not many people about, I am now on high alert,” Jessica said. “Ready to use my lulu bottle as a weapon if needed. Scared Level: 5/10.”
She then assessed the situation around her and found everyone minding their own business. Even though there weren’t too many people, there was nothing “sketchy,” she said.
“Going to stand beside the other girl and use her as my guardian. Scared Level: 4/10,” the TikToker wrote.
The content creator revealed she feels safe when she is in crowded places
After a safe subway ride, she got onto a busy bus with “lots of sleepy heads.”
At 12:43 a.m. came the “worst part of the journey.”
She had to walk alone to her house, and even though it was a safe area, she couldn’t help but quicken her pace and shoot a glance behind her before reaching the threshold of her home.
“Scared level: 7/10,” she wrote.
By 12:51 a.m., she was in the safe company of her friend Chloe, who was seen giving her applause after she made it back home.
“Yay, I survived the night! Chloe is relieved her only friend in NYC is still alive. Scared level: 0/10,” Jessica concluded. “Good night.”
Several netizens commented on her video, with one saying: “So sad that we can’t feel safe going about our lives no matter what time of the day. You’re braver than me! Stay safe.”
“This is literally me every time I go out,” a social media user commented on her video
“This is how I feel everytime I go out omg so real,” another wrote.
People from across the world said they could relate to what she was going through.
“I felt like this in London. Totally get you,” one said while another agreed, “Very brave. im the same in London. on high alert.”
“I live in the UK, visited New York for the first time last month for my birthday … beautiful city but yes, can be scary at times,” another said.
A fellow Irish netizen commented on her video saying, “Coming from Ireland I can’t believe there are buses at 12:30am.”
“This is literally me every time I go out here in Milan, but also back in Stockholm—basically everywhere. It sucks, but what to do? Better safe than sorry. Glad to see others being so aware!” another wrote.
Netizens from different countries shared their own experiences after Jessica’s viral video
“Scared level in Sweden: 1000/10 Every second when it’s dark or late,”
A viewer living in Spain said, “it was hard to me to watch this video… anyway, unfortunately we girls are not safe at any place… hugs from Spain lovely.
Jessica told Newsweek that she was from Ireland and had heard lots of spooky stories about the subway in New York.
“After a while, I began to realize that it isn’t that unsafe,” she told the outlet.
The content creator said she normally feels safe in crowded areas but sometimes feels nervous while waiting on platforms for her subway to arrive.
By sharing the video, “I just wanted to add another perspective to the narrative that is pushed a lot online that the subway is a no-go for all women after dark, which I personally think is not true,” she said.
But she also asserted that she lives in a “pretty safe” area and others in “less safe areas” might not have the same experience.
Jessica said she personally does not think the subway in NYC is a “no-go for all women after dark”
@jess.mcgirr The camera man never dies #nyc #irish #subwaysurfers ♬ Being a Girl – Jonica
The subway in New York is no exception to horrific crimes.
A woman sleeping on a subway train in NYC died after being set on fire on December 22, leading to the arrest of a suspect.
Days later, a man was arrested for allegedly shoving a subway rider in front of an oncoming train on New Year’s Eve.
An unknown stabber repeatedly knifed a fellow passenger aboard a train in the Bronx in January, and earlier this month, two straphangers were slashed inside subways in separate attacks.
While New York’s transit systems still host a number of crimes, officials recently claimed that the overall crime rates have fallen.
NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch told reporters in January that major crimes on the subway were down 5.4% in 2024 compared to 2023 as per NYPD statistics.
They were down 13% compared to 2019, the year before the pandemic drastically impacted the number of subway commuters.
However, NYPD statistics showed that 2024 recorded the highest number of subway homicides at 10, tying with the year 1997.
“Now let’s get a man to do this video,” said one comment on Jessica’s video. “It would be a completely different experience”
