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Tag Archives: van crash

Injuries following Queens ambulette accident

New York – A motor vehicle accident between an ambulette and a car occurred last night in the Flushing neighborhood of Queens. The ambulette van crashed into the car and then lunged forward into a fence, according to reports. After slamming through the fence, it came to rest half on a stone wall and half in a parking lot, having narrowly missed hitting a building. At least two accident victims suffered injuries in the van crash. It is unclear if any passengers were in the ambulette at the time of the collision. Ambulettes are usually used to transport sick and disabled people to and from hospitals and doctor’s appointments when they are unable to travel by regular car. Often, these people are wheelchair-bound or unable to walk or sit in a regular seat. Healthcare system experts say that these people often need extra special care and attention due to their disabilities and increased susceptibility to injury.

Observers note that this ambulette crash is similar to another recent but deadly ambulette accident in West Nyack, New York. That collision occurred just a month and a half ago and involved a mini bus and the medical transport van close to the Palisades Center shopping mall in Rockland County. It left one victim dead and four additional people injured in the crash along with many questions about ambulette driver training and safety. Transportation safety activists have demanded that officials look into these ambulette collisions and determine if additional training and safety regulations are necessary to ensure public safety. They warn that the fragile state of citizens who require specialized medical transportation in an ambulette must be the highest priority. Some point out that a reckless driver or negligent worker can easily lead to catastrophic consequences. See this video and article for more about this fatal van accident.

Illustrative Photo Credit: hmmmayor [License]

Police van accident leaves multiple victims injured and one dead

New York – Last week’s police van crash killed one NYPD officer after it crashed on the Bruckner Expressway in the Bronx. The on-the-job accident left eight others with multiple injuries, including at least one victim with a head injury and shoulder injury. Investigators were looking into the possibility that the driver was speeding or even driving recklessly. According to reports, the van was coming around a sharp bend when it lost control and hit a road barrier, ejecting one victim. That victim was the one who died of his accident injuries shortly after the collision. The police vehicle was not on its way to an emergency call and so the lights and sirens were not being used at the time. Motor vehicle collision specialists say that a reckless driver can easily cause a wreck such as this one, especially when driving a larger and heavier vehicle like a van. In fact, this type of vehicle can easily roll over in an accident due to the higher center of gravity. These facts make it more dangerous to operate such a police vehicle and experts say that these drivers require extra training. Internal investigations will be needed to determine if the driver was properly trained and following all necessary safety precautions to prevent accidents or injury. A worker’s compensation lawyer notes that the injuries incurred in this work accident should be covered by the police department’s worker’s comp insurance. However, if proper safety precautions were not being employed at the time of the crash, an attorney may be advisable for the injured victims as well as the family of the man who was killed in the collision. See this article for more details about the police car accident.

Illustrative photo by Youngking11 (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0], via Wikimedia Commons