Gair, Gair, Conason, Rubinowitz, Bloom, Hershenhorn, Steigman & Mackauf is a New York Plaintiff's personal injury law firm specializing in automobile accidents, construction accidents, medical malpractice, products liability, police misconduct and all types of New York personal injury litigation.

Articles Posted in Wrongful Death

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the victim posted a picture of her car on IGA woman standing next to her car was fatally hit by a tractor trailer truck in NYC last week. 27 year old Keara Rosa had just purchased a used car two weeks before with some cash that she had been saving. She was very proud of her purchase and posted a picture of the new car on Instagram and commented “HARD WORK PAYS OFF , Thank you god”. Last Wednesday around 12:15 she was driving her car on the  Cross Bronx Expressway  near Southern Boulevard when something went wrong with it. She pulled over onto the shoulder and got out of her car. As she was standing next to her car, a massive truck crashed into it, pinning Keara between the car and the wall of the expressway and killing her.

The out of control truck hit several cars injuring two before fatally crashing into Keara’s car

According to the police, the 55 year-old truck driver was driving in the right lane of the 3-lane Bronx Expressway when he swerved to the left to avoid slow traffic ahead of him. As he was doing so, he  lost control of his truck and hit 3 cars: a Toyota Corolla driven by a 51 year-old man, a Toyota Camry driven by a 29 year-old woman and a Lexus driven by a 58 year old woman. After hitting the 3 cars, the truck swiped the concrete divider in the middle of the highway.  It then swerved back to the right side crashing into Keara’s car and killing her.

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Revel-scaledA man was killed in a Revel moped accident in New York yesterday. The 32 year old man identified by the police as Jeremy Malave was riding  the rented Revel north on Woodhaven Boulevard, Queens, when he lost control of the moped and struck a light pole near 67th Drive. The accident occurred around 3:15 am. EMS found Malave lying on the ground with a massive head injury. He was rushed to the hospital but he didn’t survive. The helmet was found on the ground nearby but it was not clear if Malave was wearing it at the time of the accident. (read more in the NY Daily News)

26 year old Revel passenger killed after driver lost control of the scooter

On Saturday July 18th, CBS 2 NY reporter Nina Kapur also died in a Revel accident. 26 year old Kapur was riding a Revel moped as a passenger in Brooklyn when the driver of the scooter suddenly swerved throwing Kapur onto the roadway.  The young woman suferd critical injuries and was rushed to the hospital where she later died. The driver of the Revel, a 26 year old man, suffered minor injuries. According to a witness, neither of them were wearing a helmet. (read more in the Daily News)

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person-holding-hand-sanitizer-396233175 dangerous hand sanitizers that are being sold at major retailers such as CVS, Wallmart and others have been recalled by the FDA. The dangerous products contained methanol, also known as wood alcohol. When absorbed by the skin or swallowed, methanol can lead to severe injury such as blindness neurological damage or even death. The FDA has received several reports of consumers including children who suffered personal injury or died  after being exposed to these dangerous products.

Please check your hand sanitizer  and make sure it is not part of the list released by the FDA.

Some of the products recalled were sold under the following brands: Good Gel, Lavar 70, Saniderm, CleanCare, All-Clean and Eskbiochem. All these brands are manufactured by the same Mexican company Eskbiochem SA de CV.

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29 people including 4 cyclists and 9 pedestrians died in crashes in New York City last June. While truck and bus accidents remain lower than usual, reckless car driving and speeding continue to be a cause of many injuries and deaths.

After dipping to a record low of 5 deaths during the Covid-19 lock-down, traffic fatalities peaked to 29 in June. Since Vision Zero started in 2014, this is a record high number of fatalities that was only reached once previously in June 2016. Injuries were on the rise too in June compared to the previous months of May and April but not as dramatically as the fatalities.  The total number of accidents increased as well. One of the main reasons why the total number of accidents dipped so dramatically is because since last March the NYPD doesn’t dispatch officers anymore at the scene of minor accidents. As a result the big drop observed since March is not only related to the Covid-19 crisis but also to the the fact there are no more NYPD reports for minor accidents.

Auto Accident NYC Injuries Deaths June 2020
New York traffic accident fatalities were on the rise for all categories of road users. 11 motorists, 5 passengers, 4 cyclists and 9 pedestrians died last June compared to respectively 7, 0, 2 and 2 during the previous month and 6, 3, 3, 8 in June 2019. Many of these fatalities are related to speed and reckless driving. While the city has slowly started to get back to normal, the traffic is not as heavy as it used to be before the coronavirus crisis and many motorists are driving over the speed limit.

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accident sceneFatal car accidents related to speed are on the rise in New York City and many of them are caused by young inexperienced drivers behind the wheel.

While New Yorkers witnessed or heard the noise of drag racing all over the city during the coronavirus lock-down that started at the end of March, the city is now about to enter phase 4 of reopening but many drivers seem not to have realized that they are not alone on the road anymore.

Two days ago a 21 year old driver was speeding on the southbound lanes of the Henry Hudson Parkway when he lost control of his Honda, slammed into the median, overturned and landed on the northbound side, hitting another driver in a Toyota

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location-of-the-fatal-scaffolding-accidentA construction worker died and 3 others were injured in a scaffolding accident in Manhattan. The accident occurred yesterday afternoon around 4:20pm at a 12 story condo building located at 136 East 36th Street near Lexington Ave in Murray Hill.

According to witnesses, two hard hats on a suspended scaffold were repairing the facade at the 11th floor level when a piece of the parapet fell into the suspended scaffolding. In a chain reaction, the rig then fell onto the street shed, destroying it.

According to the Daily News a 50 year old worker died in the accident. 2 other workers suffered serious injury and are in critical condition. Another one suffered minor injury.

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New York CyclistsAfter a high number of deadly pedestrian and bicycle accidents in New York City, especially in Brooklyn, last year, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzales decided it was time to do something about it. The DA just announced that he has created a new unit that will be dedicated to investigate any fatal motor vehicle accident occurring in Brooklyn. Now anytime a motor vehicle accident involves a fatality not only the NYPD investigation squad will  investigate the accident (if they show up ) but also a prosecutor from the DA’s office will rush to the scene of the accident. The prosecutor will run his or her own investigation speaking to witnesses, collecting evidence, documenting and drafting warrants to collect evidence.This measure will hopefully bring more justice to the victims of reckless drivers who are too often being let go by the police with no charges.

Botched police investigations and poor follow up on deadly traffic accidents are common in New York City

In most accidents, including those in which people are killed, drivers are usually getting a free pass except if they were driving under the influence or if they committed an extremely reckless act.  With the new DA unit it will not be the case anymore in Brooklyn, not only drivers will be held accountable with detailed investigations but the unit will also work with lawmakers to pass new laws against reckless driving.

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Construction job with the highest risk of fall injuriesFall is the number one cause of death for construction workers. Every year in America, 10,000 construction workers suffer serious injuries and 200 die in fall accidents. To raise awareness about this problem, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and the Center for Construction Research and Training (CPWR) are organizing a yearly national campaign: The National Safety Stand-Down. The event lasts several days during which every construction company owner is invited to spend a day or at least a few hours with their employees to review fall safety protection.  Thousands of construction companies are participating every year reaching millions of construction workers.

This year the event was supposed to be organized  in May but many construction businesses were shut down because of the Covid-19 crisis. Therefore the 7th National Safety Stand-Down to prevent Falls has been moved to the 14th to 18th of September 2020.

For this year, the organizers suggest that the event be held virtually or that companies owners make sure that construction workers social distance during the stand-down. Video and webinar might be a good way to keep the stand-down safe for all.

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accident sceneA NYC pedestrian was fatally hit by a car in front of his house on Saturday evening.  50 year old Jose Barrera, a construction worker and father of 4 was killed by a car in front of his 6 year old daughter. Barrera was working 6 days a week and Saturday was his day off.

The accident occurred on 39th Street between Fort Hamilton Parkway and 10th Avenue in Brooklyn in front of his house. Barrera had just returned from grocery shopping at Cosco with his daughter and he was planning to cook for his family at night. He parked the car, carried his 6 year old daughter to the stoops and sat her there while he was unloading the car. As he was on the sidewalk carrying groceries, the driver of a 2014 Nissan Sedan lost control of his vehicle and hit him. Barrera was found by his wife laying on the ground covered in blood after she ran outside when she heard her 6 year old crying hysterically. When the ambulance arrived, it was already too late, They took him to he hospital but he could not be saved.

The driver identified as 21 year old Kareem Denton stayed at the scene of the accident. Denton and his passenger were both wearing work clothes from the Maimonides Medical Center. Police found Marjuana in the car and took Denton to the police station to be tested on suspicion that he was driving under the influence. Denton passed the test and was released a few hours later. He received a summon for Marijuana possession. No other charges were pressed against him.

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Satelite-view-of-Floyd-Bennett-AirportA tragic car accident resulted in 3 deaths and multiple injuries in New York City last Saturday night as a bunch of local teenagers gathered on a remote area of the Floyd Bennett airfield for some summer antics. Two 16 year old drivers with other young passengers on board crashed into each other while both were effectuating “donuts” on a runway converted into a road at the old Floyd Bennett Field airport.

Both drivers were 16 year old

According to the police report, 16 year old Emil Badalov was behind the wheel of a 2014 Kia Forte with 3 other people in the car: 11 year old Daniel Sidgiyayeva and his sister 18 year old Margarita, Sidgiyayeva as well as another 17 year old boy. Baladov was effectuating “donuts” when a Toyota Camry  crashed into them. The Toyota Camry was driven by another 16 year old boy who had two passengers: a 16 year old girl and an 18 year old boy. Baladov and the two Sidgiyayeva kids died while the other passenger is still hospitalized in critical condition. The 3 occupants of the Toyota Camry were all injured and hospitalized. They are in stable condition. No arrest were made.