Three cars collided at the intersection of La Palma Avenue and Brookhurst Street early morning on March 25, 2013 sending at least one person to the hospital. The Orange County Register reports that the injury collision occurred when a Ford Explorer that was northbound on Brookhurst collided with a Honda Civic that was eastbound on La Palma Avenue. The Civic was crushed on the passenger side and the driver was treated for his injuries. Walter Isom, the driver of the Nissan Sentra, was traveling through the green light directly behind the Civic when it was struck and spun into his car, damaging the front end of the Nissan. Isom was not injured. The investigation is still ongoing.
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Car Accident in Pasadena Kills Man in Front of His Home
Jose Daniel Moreno, 37, was killed in a Pasadena car crash after his car was hit by another vehicle as he was pulling out of his home. The Pasadena Star-News reports that Moreno was pulling out of the driveway of his home in the 600 block of Hill Avenue the night of March 16, 2013 when the collision occurred. Moreno was freed from the wreckage. The other driver, a 48-year-old Pasadena man, was treated for apparently minor injuries. The investigation is ongoing.
According to California Highway Patrol’s 2010 Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS) there were six fatalities and 889 injuries involving Pasadena car accidents. In Los Angeles County as a whole, 530 people died and 50,513 were injured due to traffic accidents during the same year.
Right-of-Way Issues
Toddler in Critical Condition after Los Angeles Swimming Pool Accident
A 3-year-old girl is in critical condition after nearly drowning in a backyard swimming pool accident the evening of March 16, 2013. According to a CBS Los Angeles news report, the incident occurred at a home in the 11500 block of Bonham Avenue in Pacoima. The girl’s mother told officials that the child had been “out of sight only a few minutes.” She was found face down in the mostly empty pool in two feet of putrid storm water that had gotten into the pool. The mother was able to pull her daughter out of the water before rescuers arrived. She was transported in critical condition to the Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles.
Young Children and Drowning Dangers
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), children ages 1 to 4 have the highest drowning rates. In 2009, among children 1 to 4 years old who died from an unintentional injury, more than 30 percent died from drowning. Among children ages 1 to 4, most drowning and near drowning incidents occur in home swimming pools. Drowning is responsible for more deaths among children in that age group than any other cause except birth defects. Among children between the ages of 1 and 14, fatal drowning remains the second leading cause of injury-related death behind car crashes. Near-drowning incidents can result in brain damage because oxygen to the brain is cut off when a person is submerged.
Man Killed in Mission Viejo Bicycle Accident
Eric Billings, 54, was killed in an Orange County bicycle crash after, officials say, a car struck him while he was riding in the bike lane. According to a news report in The Orange County Register, the fatal collision occurred the evening of March 15, 2013 on Santa Margarita Parkway between El Toro Road and Los Alisos Boulevard in Mission Viejo.
Police say Hast Fakhrai-Bayrooti, 39, was driving the 2003 Acura that struck Billings who was riding in the bike lane. It is not known if any citations were issued. Billings has been described as a beloved member of the community, a deeply spiritual man and a mentor to teens and young adults in the community.
Bicycle Collisions
Elderly Woman Seriously Injured in Leisure World after Collision with Golf Cart
A 93-year-old woman on a mobility scooter suffered severe injuries after a golf cart struck her in a crosswalk at Leisure World, a retirement community in Seal Beach. According to a news account in The Orange County Register, the major injury crash occurred the morning of March 12, 2013 at St. Andrews Drive north of Tam O’Shanter Road. Police say the driver of a golf cart failed to stop for the woman who was riding her mobility scooter across the street in a marked crosswalk, striking her. The elderly woman was transported to an area hospital with major injuries. The driver of the golf cart was not cited or arrested pending an official investigation.
OC Pedestrian Crashes
According to California Highway Patrol’s 2010 Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS), one person died and four were injured as a result of pedestrian collisions in Seal Beach. In Orange County as a whole, 32 fatalities and 770 injuries were reported due to pedestrian accidents during the same year.
Woman Seriously Injured in Diamond Bar Car Crash
Kathryn Rios, 19, of Rowland Heights, suffered major injuries in a car crash in Diamond Bar after an SUV struck her stopped Toyota Corolla on the 57 Freeway. According to a news report in the San Gabriel Valley Tribune, the major injury collision occurred the afternoon of March 12, 2013 on the southbound 57 Freeway just south of Brea Canyon Cutoff Road. California Highway Patrol officials say 38-year-old Edward Castaneda of La Habra was driving a Ford Explorer SUV that rear-ended Rios’s car.
He was cited at the scene for driving on a suspended license and failing to provide proof of insurance at a collision scene. Officials do not believe that alcohol or drugs were factors. CHP officials say that for some reason Castaneda failed to notice the Toyota that was stopped directly in front of him. Rios was transported to an area hospital with major injuries. Castaneda was uninjured. The investigation is ongoing.
LA Crash Statistics
Female Passenger Killed in Long Beach Car Crash
Teresa Davis, 46, was killed in a Long Beach car crash after the vehicle in which she was a passenger veered out of control and collided with a pole. The Press-Telegram reports that the fatal car crash occurred early morning on March 10, 2013 at the intersection of Long Beach Boulevard and 56th Street in North Long Beach. Police say Davis was the only passenger in a 2012 Ford Fusion that was driven by 39-year-old Darrell Childs.
The car was going south on Long Beach Boulevard when, for an unknown reason, the car veered onto the west parkway, hit a light pole and then struck a traffic signal pole. Davis died at the scene and Childs was transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The cause of this fatal crash is still under investigation. Anyone with information about this crash is asked to contact Long Beach police at 562-570-7355.
Car Crash Statistics
Popular Sacramento School Coach Dies after Becoming Impaled by School Gate
Marion Adams, a popular track and field coach and multimedia teacher at Rio Linda High School, died after he became impaled in the arm of a gate at the school. According to a news report in The Sacramento Bee, the fatal incident occurred on March 4, 2013 as Adams, 59, was riding his bicycle after track practice at the school. He looked over his shoulder to say goodbye to a student when he did not see the partially open metal swing gate in the school parking lot. At his rate of speed, Adams was impaled by the gate arm. He initially survived two surgeries to treat internal injuries, but later succumbed to them. The Bee reports that the entire school has been plunged in grief and shock, trying to deal with this senseless tragedy.
What Caused This Tragic Incident?
Based on this news report, it is not clear precisely what caused this incident, which has been described by many as a “freak” accident. There are still several unanswered questions here. Was this accident the result of a dangerous condition on the school’s property? Was the gate supposed to be closed all the time? If so, who left it open? Was there something about the design of these gates that made them dangerous? Have there been other similar incidents at locations where these gates were installed? These are some of the important questions that must be asked in order to determine who was at fault and who, if anyone, should be held liable.
Intern Killed by Lion in Cat Sanctuary near Fresno
Diana Hanson, 24, an intern at a big cat sanctuary in Dunlap, Calif., was mauled to death by a lion on March 6, 2013. According to an ABC News report, the fatal incident occurred at the Cat Haven in Dunlap, a small town in Fresno County near Kings Canyon National Park. Officials say Hanson was inside the cat enclosure when a 4-year-old African lion names Cous Cous attacked her. It was not immediately clear what Hanson was doing inside the enclosure or what caused the attack.
‘Her True Passion in Life’
Another employer unsuccessfully tried to lure the lion away from Hanson. The lion was eventually shot by a Fresno County sheriff’s deputy who responded to the call. The park was closed at the time of the attack and there were no visitors inside. Hanson’s father tells ABC News that his daughter loved being around large cats and that working with them was her true passion in life. Hanson trained with three tigers and a lion while in college at Western Washington State University, her father said.
Man Files Negligence Lawsuit After Injury At Work
Jose A. Salazar, a 52-year-old worker, has filed a negligence lawsuit against Caltrain alleging that the agency did not provide a safe work environment. Salazar suffered a fractured skull and a broken back after fellow workers hit him with a 39-foot long, 1,768 pound section of steel track while performing railroad work in South San Francisco. Salazar was in a month-long coma after the Nov. 8 accident, but the extent of his recovery or his prognosis is not known.
Workers Were Negligent, Suit States
On the day of the injury, Salazar and some of his co-workers were fixing a damaged section of rail north of the South San Francisco Caltrain station. A piece of rail struck him after the workers lost control while lifting it. Salazar was eventually pinned to the ground.