How Sheinelle Jones Became Trapped on New York Train for Hours

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Sheinelle Jones was living a spooky, scary ordeal. 

The host of Today shared a story about being stuck on a New York City train. She had fallen asleep on her late-night trip from Philadelphia and woke up to find herself unable to leave.

Sheinelle told Jenna Bush Hager on the April 6th episode of Today With Jenna & Sheinelle that she woke up to find herself alone on the train. She was surprised to discover it was already 12:20 when she checked her phone.

This meant the 47-year-old woman slept for two hours while the train was in the New York City subway system. When she woke up, she said there was no one around to assist her because she was at the end of the line.

She remembered thinking, ‘I’m sure I can find someone in charge, like a conductor.’ But after walking through the whole train, she couldn’t find anyone. So, she thought, ‘It’ll be easy, I’ll just open the doors myself.’

When the train doors wouldn’t open, even after Sheinelle tried and failed to force them open with her hands—actually bruising her finger—she understood she was trapped. She thought to herself, “Oh, I’m stuck on the train.”

Sheinelle was finally saved by the police after she called 911 for help. She described feeling helpless, saying, “I just needed someone to stay on the line with me, like I was a little child.”

Sheinelle explained her kids weren’t concerned about where she was because they know whenever she travels to Philadelphia, she always returns on the last train of the night. Her son, Kayin, 16, and her twins, Clara and Uche, 13, understand this routine.

The TV personality said her children, from her marriage to the late Uche Ojeh, didn’t even seem to notice she was home late – they just kept playing video games.

She added with a sharp tone, “It’s just strange to me that no one seemed to notice or ask where I was. It’s like nobody said, ‘Mom, are you okay?'”

After her frightening experience, Sheinelle asked late-night train riders to be careful.

“PSA,” she began. “If you see someone’s asleep on the train and it’s the last stop, wake ’em up.” 

To learn more about Sheinelle and her history with Today, keep reading.

Sheinelle Jones, originally from Philadelphia, developed her passion for language and stories growing up in Wichita, Kansas. In a 2024 interview with Northwestern Magazine, she described how her mother, Sheila Kinnard, filled their home with positive affirmations. She remembers seeing inspiring quotes, like “If you can see it, you can be it,” even as early as eighth grade, and credits this with instilling a sense of purpose.

Growing up, Jones was a busy high schooler – she was a cheerleader, played the clarinet, and participated in student council. Her bedroom walls were decorated with pictures of her idols: pop star Janet Jackson and local news personalities, like KWCH 12’s well-known Cindy Klose.

Jones was eager to become a news reporter, and she landed an internship at a local CBS station thanks to a connection her grandmother had through church.

Speaking at Northwestern’s Medill School of Journalism in 2018, she shared how she achieved her dream. Surrounded by inspiring quotes, she described visualizing herself as a news anchor – picturing her own professional headshot alongside those of her role models until, eventually, that vision came true.

From the start of her time at Northwestern University, Jones worked tirelessly to gain experience. She landed an internship at an NBC station in Wichita, and then persistently contacted BET Networks until they offered her a summer position, even though it was unpaid. To support herself during the summer in Washington, D.C., she worked at a Rainbow clothing store and stayed with her older sister.

Using the skills she gained from studying journalism, Spanish, and public speaking, Jones began her broadcasting career at an NBC station in Springfield, Illinois. She later became an evening news anchor and reporter for a Fox station in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

She then spent nine years at Fox’s Emmy Award-winning Good Day Philadelphia. In 2014, Jones—the daughter of Kinnard and U.S. District Court Judge C. Darnell Jones II, and one of five children—joined Weekend Today. She became co-host of the third hour of Today in 2019, and eventually co-hosted Today with Jenna & Sheinelle alongside Jenna Bush Hager.

In January 2025, after quietly leaving her position at the desk she shared with Craig Melvin and Savannah Guthrie in December 2024, the mother of Kayin, Clara, and Uche explained her departure in an Instagram post.

Jones shared that they are focusing on a family health issue. They expressed gratitude for the incredible support received from their colleagues at the Today Show and from viewers, saying their kindness is deeply appreciated.

Viewers learned the full extent of Savannah Jones’ personal struggles in May. Savannah Guthrie announced with deep sadness that her husband of 17 years, Uche Ojeh, had died after a brave fight with glioblastoma, a fast-moving and aggressive type of brain cancer.

Jones, while still healing from a deep loss, has turned her experience into a lesson for her children: it’s okay to feel and express emotions. She shared with Today in September 2025 that she now views sadness as a natural process, like rain. “I’ve learned to accept and experience my grief, rather than avoid it,” she explained. “I tell my kids that just like rain eventually stops, so will intense sadness. It’s okay to cry and feel those emotions – it’s a way of cleansing and clearing the air. When I feel grief coming, I now think of it as ‘my cleansing rain’ and allow myself to feel it.”

Jones’ quick thinking, a trait that defined her successful career, also played a role in how she met her future husband. She admitted to Northwestern Magazine that she pretended to be a tour guide and led him around campus, even though she was on her way to class. Her reason? She thought he was cute.

After dating for eight years and experiencing a couple of near misses – she’d thought he was proposing once with a bracelet and again during a trip to Cancun – they were back where they started, ready to begin a long-term commitment. They had already planned out their future together, envisioning a decades-long journey.

Jones shared on Today in 2018 that they were visiting Northwestern University when her partner suggested they go to their favorite place by the lake, even though it was raining. She was reluctant to get wet, but he persuaded her, and then he proposed.

She married a Nigerian-born consultant, who was a managing partner at UAO Consulting and enjoyed competing in triathlons, in Philadelphia in September 2007. They later had a son, Kayin, in August 2009, and twins, Clara and Uche, in July 2012.

I always try to teach my three kids that they need to work together and look out for one another,” she shared with Today.

During her third week back at Today, Sheinelle Jones sat in the Jenna & Friends chair for the first time. Jenna Hager Bush surprised her friend with a heartwarming segment she called “The Secret Society of Sheinelle,” featuring six of Jones’s closest friends who helped her through a difficult time.

Jones, one of sixty people who’ve been seated near Hager since Hoda Kotb left the show, playfully told her, “Let’s hope this date goes well enough that you’ll be waiting for my call tomorrow!”

Reader, she did. 

Before her first show on December 8th, Jones put on an old shirt of her husband’s and shared a special moment with her three children. She explained she said a quick prayer and then told herself it was time to connect with someone she considered more than a friend – a sister. Jenna Hager Bush agreed, saying there was no one she’d rather share the experience with.

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2026-04-07 02:17