An 81 year old woman was in critical condition after she was hit by an unlicensed 36 year old driver yesterday night in New York City. The accident happened at the intersection of Targee St. and Narrow Rd in Staten Island. The elderly woman was crossing the road when the driver struck her. The driver was issued a summons for unlicensed operation of a vehicle. This accident is the third serious pedestrian accident in Staten Island, NYC, this month.
The intersection where the accident happened
Recent statistics show that 41% of teen drivers who died in car accidents were intoxicated. While drunk driving has been declining, driving while impaired by other substances such as weed, other illegal drugs, prescription and OTC medication has increased significantly. The National Teen Driver Safety Week that will kick off on October 18th will focus on this particular issue. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in association with the Center for Injury Research and Prevention at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia has developed material for schools and for parents to increase teen awareness about impaired driving. Under the theme “Avoid the Regret – Avoid Impaired Driving” the campaign is seeking solutions to prevent teens deaths and injuries on the road.
Read more here
While Manhattan bicyclists are getting new protected bike lanes, Brooklyn bicyclists are still at risk of dangerous bicycle accidents and the police is not really helping!
Joanna Oltman Smith posted this picture of police officers painting parking numbers over a Brooklyn bike lane on her Twitter account.
They had to repaint the street but the bike lane is still used for parking. The picture below that was tweeted by Nick Malinowksi shows how dangerous it is for a bicyclist to ride on this street.
The DOT recently announced that New Yorkers using the Sixth Ave bike lane between W14th Street and West 33rd Street will soon be better protected from dangerous bicycle accidents as the city is planning to replace the actual strip of white paint with a secure and protected bike lane. The DOT didn’t specify what type of configuration will be implemented. Options may include a physically separated bike lane, a parking protected bike lane or two-way separated lanes. Protected bike lanes have proven to be very effective in reducing the number of traffic injuries. In a document entitled Measuring the Street, the Dot indicated that since Ninth Ave was redesigned with a protected bike lane and pedestrian safety islands, it recorded a 58% decline in injuries to all street users. Read more in Chelsea Now
A 34 year old woman died in a NYC accident involving a truck and a bicycle. The woman was riding her bike west on 56th Road near 46th Street in Maspeth, Queens yesterday morning around 8:45 when she was hit by a truck. She was rushed to the hospital in critical condition and died shortly after. The driver who’s license was suspended was taken into custody. Charges are pending. Read more in the NY Daily News
56th Road near 46th Street doesn’t offer much protection to bicyclists, Picture: Google map
2 pedestrians suffered personal injury in a New York City car accident this morning. Two men in their 40’s were walking near 18th Ave and 47th street in Borough Park, Brooklyn when a car jumped the curb and hit them early this morning. According to the police the driver fell asleep behind the wheel.
For the last few months in New York City there were more than 50 monthly traffic accidents caused by drivers falling asleep. According to NYPD statistics, these types of accidents have been steadily increasing in the city since the beginning of 2013. Until April 14 they would be below 50 most of the time.
The company Bed Handles Inc is re-announcing the recall of 3 models of their portable bed handles because they are defective and have caused the death of 4 people. These products are: Bedside Assistant, Model BA10W, Travel Handles Use, Model BA11W, Adjustable Bed Handle, Model AJ1.
When attached to an adult bed without the use of safety retention straps, the handles can shift out of place, creating a dangerous gap between the handles and the side of the mattress, posing a risk of entrapment, strangulation and death.
Recently a 90 year old woman died in a nursing home after being entrapped in the gap between the mattress and the defective bed handle. Before her three other women died in similar conditions.
Two people who could have died in a school bus accident only suffered minor personal injury thanks to a courageous NYPD officer. Christopher Canale, a NYPD transit cop on the Far Rockaway train line was driving on the Long Island Expressway last Thursday with his family when a mini school bus crashed into a box truck and started to burn just in front of his car. Canale stopped on the side of the road and ran to the bus thinking it was full of children. He quickly realized that only two people were on on board: the bus driver and an aid stuck in the back. The NYPD cop was first able to get the aid out of the bus safely. Then as the flames were threatening to burn the feet of the bus driver who was stuck between his seat and the steering wheel he was able to pull him out to safety just before the bus burst into fire. Read more in the NY Daily News
The picture taken by Canale after he rescued the two people
Construction workers that are exposed to vapors, gases, dusts and fumes are at increased risk of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) according to a study that was recently published in the American Journal of Industrial Medicine. The study looked at 834 cases of older construction workers with COPD and analysed their lifetime work and exposure histories. Researchers found that as a result of broad and complex effects of many exposures acting independently or interactively, construction workers are at increased risk of COPD and those who are smokers are the most at risk.
Tomorrow, Wednesday Ocotber 14 at 2pm Easter Time, The Center for Construction Research and Training (CPWR) invited Dr John Dement, the lead author of this study to present his findings in a webinar. This webinar is free and will last 20 minutes. You can click here to register.
Key finding from the research can also be downloaded here.
A pedestrian was fatally struck by a truck and several other people suffered personal injury yesterday near the intersection of Bruckner Blvd and 138th street in the Bronx, NYC.
37 year old Cheniqua Silva, a mother of 5 teenagers was on the phone with her husband while waiting for the bus on the sidewalk when a Coca-Cola truck jump the curb and slammed into her. The woman was trapped beneath the truck and died at the scene of the accident.
According to a witness a car that was trying to avoid motorcycles hit the truck causing it to jump the curb.
New York Personal Injury Attorneys Blog