California Injury Blog

Published on: April 1, 2011

Woman Killed in Los Angeles Pedestrian Accident

By Brian Chase

Kelly Shimizu, 63, was killed in a Los Angeles car accident after she was struck in a crosswalk the morning of March 30, 2011. According to a CBS News report, the fatal pedestrian accident occurred at the intersection of Santa Monica Boulevard and Cotner Avenue in West Los Angeles. Police say Shimizu was walking in a marked crosswalk at the intersection when a big rig hit her. Officials say the trucker, a Whittier resident, may not have realized that he hit someone. An investigation is ongoing. Anyone who witnessed this fatal truck accident is asked to contact LAPD at 213-473-0222.

I offer my deepest condolences to the family and friends of Kelly Shimizu for their tragic and heartbreaking loss. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.

Pedestrian Accidents in Los Angeles

According to California Highway Patrol’s 2008 Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS) 104 people died and 2,716 were injured due to pedestrian accidents in Los Angeles. Also, countywide, pedestrian accidents claimed 214 lives and injured 4,985 people during the same year.
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Published on: March 31, 2011

Cases Related to Tainted IV Bags Documented since January

By Brian Chase

Health officials in Alabama are now saying that cases linked to contaminated IV bags, which killed nine patients and sickened many others, started well before this month’s recall. According to a report in The Birmingham News, others are worried that the contaminated intravenous fluid could be in other pharmacies.

Ongoing Federal Investigation

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are investigating an outbreak of the deadly serratia marcescens bacteria in six Alabama hospitals. So far, 19 patients have tested positive for the infection. Nine patients have died. A majority of infections occurred in March, but one case was reported in January and another in February, officials say.

All of the patients who were infected by the bacteria received intravenous fluids mixed by Alabama-based Meds IV. The company, on March 24, 2011, recalled all of its IV products manufactured since January 1. The company reportedly provided the contaminated IV bags to six hospitals in Alabama. This type of bacterial infection is treatable with medication in the early stages, but can be lethal, if not detected.
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Published on: March 30, 2011

Pedestrian Injured in Orange County Car Accident

By Brian Chase

A pedestrian was injured in an Orange County car accident after a female driver accidentally hit the accelerator instead of the brake and drove through a store window. According to a news report in The Orange County Register, the injury pedestrian accident occurred the evening of March 29, 2011 at a 7-Eleven store at the corner of Main Street and Palmyra Avenue in Orange. The GMC Sierra pickup truck struck a guard rail and plowed into the entrance of the convenience store. The rail hit a female pedestrian. Officials say she sustained injuries which are not life-threatening. No one else was injured.

My heart goes out to the injured pedestrian. I’m relieved to note that she did not sustain major injuries in this car accident. I wish her the very best for a speedy and complete recovery. She will be in my thoughts and prayers.
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Published on: March 29, 2011

Police Officer Injured in Bakersfield Car Accident

By Brian Chase

A police officer was injured in a Bakersfield car accident when a Scion xB struck his motorcycle the afternoon of March 27, 2011. According to a news report in the Bakersfield Californian, the motorcycle accident occurred at Olive and Knudsen drives in Bakersfield. The officer was making a left turn with his emergency lights on when the Scion made a left turn from Olive on a green light and struck him. The officer suffered injuries, which are not believed to be life-threatening. The driver of the Scion had a green light but failed to notice the police officer on the motorcycle with his lights and sirens on, officials say. An investigation is ongoing.

My thoughts and prayers are with the police officer injured in this motorcycle accident. I wish him the very best for a complete and speedy recovery.

Motorcycle Accident Statistics

According to California Highway Patrol’s 2008 Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS), seven people were killed and 57 were injured in Bakersfield motorcycle accidents. During the same year, there were 16 fatalities and 234 injuries reported as a result of Kern County motorcycle accidents.
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Published on: March 28, 2011

San Diego Injury Car Accident Involved Drunk, Hit-and-Run Driver

By Brian Chase

Yvonne Morgan was seriously injured in a San Diego car accident after she was struck by a driver who, officials say, was under the influence, ran a red light and broadsided her vehicle at an intersection. According to a news report in The San Diego Union-Tribune, police arrested 21-year-old Jose Espinoza shortly after the incident.

Espinoza was driving a Chevy pickup truck east on Jamacha Road in Spring Valley the morning of March 25, 2011, when he ran a red light at Sweetwater Road and hit Morgan’s Lincoln Navigator. Morgan apparently had the green light at the intersection while traveling north on Sweetwater. Espinoza fled the scene on foot and Morgan was transported to a local hospital with head injuries. However, officers soon tracked down Espinoza to his home. He has been charged with felony hit-and-run causing injury and felony DUI.

My heart goes out to Yvonne Morgan, who has been seriously injured in this hit-and-run car accident. I wish her the very best for a speedy and complete recovery.
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Published on: March 25, 2011

San Diego Car Accident Proves Fatal

By Brian Chase

Kevin Birse, 22, was killed in a San Diego car accident when his vehicle veered off the roadway and rolled over the night of March 23, 2011. According to a news report in The San Diego Union-Tribune, the fatal car accident occurred on San Vicente Road in Ramona. Birse’s Toyota Tundra went off the roadway near Arena Drive and overturned. Birse sustained fatal injuries in the crash. Investigators are trying to determine what caused this fatal injury accident.

My heartfelt condolences go out to the family and friends of Kevin Birse. My thoughts and prayers are with them following this tragic rollover accident.

San Diego Car Accident Statistics

According to California Highway Patrol’s 2008 Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS), 90 people were killed and 2,252 were injured as a result of car accidents in unincorporated areas of San Diego County. During that same year, there were 246 fatalities and 13,527 injuries due to car accidents in San Diego County.
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Published on: March 24, 2011

Teenager Killed in Los Angeles Car Accident

By Brian Chase

Bernabe Basurto, 19, was killed in a Los Angeles car accident after he was struck by a vehicle on the freeway. According to CBS Los Angeles, the fatal injury accident occurred on the 110 Freeway in Los Angeles early morning on March 18, 2011. Officials say Basurto’s vehicle first crashed into an unoccupied vehicle on the freeway. Apparently, he was then hit by a 2008 Mazda Tribute driven by a 60-year-old man when he had gotten out of his disabled vehicle. The driver of the SUV was trying to avoid the two vehicles when he swerved and hit Basurto. The 60-year-old man suffered minor injuries.

My heartfelt condolences go out to the family and friends of Bernabe Basurto. My thoughts and prayers are with them following this tragic Los Angeles car accident.

Los Angeles Car Accident Statistics

According to California Highway Patrol’s 2008 Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS), 268 people were killed and 25,588 were injured in Los Angeles car accidents. During that same year, there were 667 fatalities and 52,229 injuries reported as a result of Los Angeles County car accidents.
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Published on: March 23, 2011

San Francisco Muni Streetcar Accident Injures Six

By Brian Chase

Six passengers were injured in a San Francisco truck accident involving a big rig and a San Francisco Municipal Railway streetcar the morning of March 21, 2011. According to a CBS news report, the streetcar accident occurred at the intersection of Third and 23rd streets in the Dogpatch neighborhood of San Francisco. A truck with a flatbed trailer broadsided the KT-Ingleside/Third Street light rail vehicle. The six passengers in the streetcar, including one passenger who was in a wheelchair, sustained injuries, which are believed to be non-life-threatening. The injured victims were treated at the crash site and transported to local hospitals for evaluation. An investigation is ongoing.

My thoughts and prayers are with the six victims injured in this San Francisco Muni streetcar accident. I wish them all a complete and speedy recovery.
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Published on: March 22, 2011

Pedestrian Killed in Orange County Car Accident

By Brian Chase

Berna Martinez, 74, was killed in an Orange County car accident after she was struck by a vehicle while crossing a roadway. According to a news report in The Orange County Register, the fatal pedestrian accident occurred the morning of March 21, 2011 as Martinez was crossing at the intersection of Red Hill Avenue and El Camino Real in Tustin.

She was hit by a Mercury Sable driven by an elderly woman and dragged for about a mile under the vehicle through El Camino Real and Newport Avenue. Martinez’s body came loose from the vehicle at Newport Avenue, near Sixth Street. She was found next to the center divider. The driver, a 79-year-old woman, was stopped by witnesses at Newport and Irvine boulevards. Officers say Martinez was struck at a lighted, controlled crosswalk. An investigation is ongoing.

I offer my deepest condolences to the family members and friends of Berna Martinez for their tragic and heartbreaking loss. Please keep this grieving family in your thoughts and prayers.
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Published on: March 21, 2011

Los Angeles Pedestrian Killed by Suspected Drunk Driver

By Brian Chase

A man in his 30s was killed in a Los Angeles car accident, which police say, involved a drunk driver. According to a City News Service article, the fatal pedestrian accident occurred near the intersection of Compton Avenue and East 74th Street in unincorporated South Los Angeles the night of March 18, 2011. Authorities report that a Chevrolet Suburban struck a vehicle and a pedestrian near the intersection. The pedestrian was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash. The driver of the Suburban tried to run away on foot but was apprehended by the police and arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence.

My deepest condolences go out to the family and friends of the man killed in this tragic DUI collision. My thoughts and prayers are with them during this difficult time.
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