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 Auto Accidents

Published on:

bicycle accident location 5 people died in bicycle accidents in New York City over the last 4 weeks.  The most recent accident occurred two days ago in Brooklyn. A 47-year-old man was riding his bike on Rochester Avenue when he was hit by a SUV at the intersection of Atlantic Avenue. The driver of the SUV was a 19-year-old woman. She wasn’t charged.

According to  Brad Aaron from NYC Streetblog, the police officer on the scene blamed the victim and told the media that the bicyclist ran a red light. However according to Brad Aaron, the investigation is ongoing and the officer’s statement was probably negative speculation. Unfortunately NYPD officers present at the scene of bicycle accidents have a bad habit of blaming the victims and to protect the drivers (see also previous blog).

Atlantic Avenue is a very dangerous artery and the DOT is planning to redesign the avenue. However the DOT has no no plans to change this particular intersection. Maybe they will change their mind after this accident.

Published on:

city-seal-prThere were 93 traffic fatalities in New York City for the first 6 months of 2017. This is the first time since traffic accident data began being recorded in the City that this number went below 100. 203 people died in motor vehicle accidents in NYC for the full fiscal year that ended on June 30.

These numbers were announced a few days ago by Mayor Bill de Blasio. “No loss of life on our streets is acceptable, but under Vision Zero, we have seen continued and consistent progress, with traffic fatalities on the decline for three-and-a-half-years, strongly countering national trends,” said Mayor de Blasio.

Since 2014, the city has been taking multiple measures such as street redesign and traffic enforcement to try to make the streets safer for all New Yorkers. Pedestrians, especially children and seniors are the most at risk of being fatally struck by a car. Among the 93 people who died in traffic accidents, 47 of them were pedestrians. Respectively 63, 54 and 55 and  of them died during the same period of 2016, 2015 and 2014.

Published on:

11 people died in auto accidents in New York City last May compared to 20 in April and 18 for the same month a year ago. This is a the lowest number of traffic deaths recorded since March 2016 where the number was also 11. This record low number of auto accident deaths occurred despite traffic accidents reaching 20,689 during the same month. This is the highest number of monthly motor vehicle accidents ever recorded in the city. The month before there were 17,585 motor vehicle accidents and 19,911 in May last year.

Traffic accidents in the city have been on a rising trend.  However it is only the second time that this number is above 20,000. Before that, the monthly number of accidents only went above 20,000 once in October 2015. (Click on graphs for full size)

Auto Accidents NYC Monthly Graph
While the number of traffic accidents has been increasing steadily, the number of deaths related to theses accidents have been declining over the last 4 years. This decline may be explained by the various street safety initiatives that have been launched under the umbrella of the Vision Zero Program to reduce traffic deaths in the city.

Published on:

accident sceneA man died in a crash in Manhattan last Friday night. The 29-year-old driver of a 2013 Nissan Altima was speeding on the West drive of Central Park when he lost control of his vehicle. He jumped the curve and after crossing a grassy area he crashed into an oak tree 300 feet from the roadway. He was transported to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. The speed limit inside Central Park is 25 mph but according to witnesses the car was probably going at a speed of 60 to 70 mph. The accident occurred on Friday night around 11:30 pm. According to Park Drive Regulations, cars are only allowed on the West Drive weekdays between 8:00 am and 10:00 am.  It is not clear why the man was driving on the West Drive of the Park at this time.

Published on:

A cop was injured in a car accident in New York, early Sunday night. The cop was standing near the exit of a garage located next to the 23rd street Pier. Around 3:20 am a SUV that was exiting the garage in a rush went through a wood barricade and clipped the cop. The cop suffered hand and knees injuries. He was transported to the hospital. The car driver may have been fleeing the scene of a brawl that occurred at the pier at the end of a boat party. The driver and the passenger were both arrested.

Published on:

A young man is dead and his girlfriend critically injured after their car crashed into a tractor trailer truck in Queens early Saturday morning. 28 year old Steven Narvaez was driving with his 17 year old girlfriend when he blew a red light at the intersection of Skillman Ave and Queens Blvd a little bit before 6:00 am. His Toyota Corolla T-boned an 18-wheel municipal waste truck.
The young driver was found dead in his seat by the EMS. His girlfriend was transported to the hospital in critical condition.
Both families were crushed by the drama.

Published on:

A fruit vendor was seriously injured in a car accident in Queens, NYC. The man was unloading fruit out of his van when a driver who was attempting to parallel park struck his van. The impact brutally pushed the van back, pinning the fruit vendor against the car parked behind him. The 52 year old fruit vendor identified as Tafazzul Hussein suffered serious injuries to both legs. See video here
The driver Sunel Amehd first reaction was to speed off but he returned almost immediately and admitted the accident. The collision occurred around 10:45 pm near the intersection of Drew Street and 101 st Ave in Richmond Hills, Queens, NYC.
During Ramadan, Tagazull Hussein would keep the fruit stand opened late to feed worshippers leaving a mosque located 2 blocks away. He is a figure in the neighborhood.

Published on:

A bicyclist was severely injured by a reckless driver who was chased by the police. The driver identified as 28 year old Raheem Addison had 25 license suspensions in 12 different states and 21 prior arrests. He had been partying for hours at a pride event before getting behind the wheel of a car parked in a Midtown garage. As he left the garage he almost hit a family. Someone alerted the police. When the police arrived near the garage, they saw the man parked outside the garage, in the driver’s seat. When he saw them, the young driver took off. The police started to chase him in the middle of one of the most populated areas of Midtown Manhattan. The driver, who was intoxicated, crossed the double line on 34th street before making a left turn and enter 7th Ave in the wrong direction. He hit a 32 year old bicyclist, severely injuring him and continued his erratic driving almost hitting other pedestrians who had to jump out of the way of the car to avoid him. The driver drove the wrong way for two blocks, turned on 26th street and shortly later abandoned the car running away on foot. Police eventually found him and he was taken into custody. The owner of the car who was seated next to him as a passenger during the entire chase was released without charges. The bicyclist who was ejected across the street at the time of the accident was transported to the hospital with critical injuries. He is now in serious but stable condition.

Published on:

A 96-year-old pedestrian died after a car backing out of a driveway hit her.  Last Tuesday, 96 year Ruth Cohn was talking a walk a block away from the Atria Riverdale senior home where  she lived when the accident occurred. She was struck by a car backing out of a driveway. She was taken to the hospital and diagnosed with legs and pelvic injuries. She died the next day. The driver, a 46 year old woman stayed at the scene of the accident. She wasn’t charged. Read more in the NY Daily News

With baby boomers reaching retirement age, many pedestrians walking in New York City streets are seniors.  They represent 13% of the whole population of New York City however they account for 39% of NYC pedestrian fatalities. According to the DOT, the senior pedestrians fatality rate is 4x that of younger New Yorkers. As part of the Vision Zero Initiative, the DOT is working on various projects to make the streets of New York City safer for the seniors. The complete DOT presentation can be downloaded here

pedestrian fatality NYC by age

Published on:

A pedestrian was fatally struck by a tractor-trailer truck early this morning in New York City. The pedestrian who is believed to be in his twenties was crossing Flatlands Avenue near East 79th Street around 4:00 am this morning when he was hit by a car carrier trailer. The driver stayed at the scene of the accident. The pedestrian who suffered multiple body trauma was transported to the hospital where he was declared dead (Read more in the NY Daily News). 

During the week-end in Queens, two young men were killed in a car accident related to speeding. 22 year old Blake Garry had just received a car from his dad a few months ago and was driving with two of his friends in a residential block in Hollis Queens.  He was speeding and lost control of his vehicle. He hit a tree and a fire hydrant so violently that the front of the car flew 50 feet away and landed on the lawn of a house across the street. The driver was ejected from the car. He died at the scene of the accident. The back seat passenger, 21 year old James Montague was rushed to the hospital where he died shortly after his arrival. The front seat passenger, Christian Baptiste, miraculously, only suffered a few scratches to his face and refused medical attention. (Read more in the NY Daily News)

Also in Queens, at the beginning of Friday evening, a collision between two cars sent seven people including 4 children to the hospital.  The accident occurred around 5pm in Flushing, Queens. A BMW heading South on 162nd Street collided with a Nissan that was crossing on 32nd Ave. According to the NY Daily News, the BMW may have run the stop sign. As a result a 2 month old boy was transported to the hospital in critical condition. 2 other children were seriously injured and 3 adults suffered minor injuries.