An elderly woman was killed in a commercial truck accident in Brooklyn earlier this month. The victim, a 67-year-old resident of Brooklyn’s Bensonhurst neighborhood was struck near the intersection of Bay Parkway and 86th Street just after 4 in the morning. The truck was a privately owned sanitation truck.
The driver left the scene of the accident. It is unknown how long the victim laying in the roadway before she was spotted. By the time emergency services responded, the victim was deceased.
As of last week, NYPD investigators were still searching for the driver of the vehicle. It is unclear whether the driver even knew that the woman had been hit. Unfortunately, this is very typical in commercial truck accidents in New York City. Firstly, these large vehicles have significant blind spots. Secondly, their size and large motors (noise and vibration) block most sensory input which makes it that much harder for the driver to be aware of smaller vehicles, pedestrians and bicyclists.
The multi-lane intersection where the Brooklyn commercial truck accident occurred has its own hazards-large concrete posts that make it difficult for pedestrians to be seen. Speaking for the NYPD, Deputy Chief Scholl said that elderly pedestrians must be extra cautious when walking in the city and always assume that drivers of oncoming vehicles do not see them.
Once the truck is identified, the family will have a claim against the owner and driver of the vehicle for pain and suffering for the time the victim survived after the accident and the amount of money she would have contributed to her household, if she was still working. As a pedestrian, the woman is entitled to no-fault benefits from the truck’s insurance company which will pay for the hospital, medical and funeral expenses.
If you or a loved one has been injured by a careless truck driver, you need an experienced commercial truck accident attorney in New York City on your side. Call the Law Offices of Nussin S. Fogel at 800-734-9338 or 212-385-1122 for a free consultation.