The Governors Highway Safety Association says California leads the nation in the number of people killed in pedestrian accidents. Pedestrians can be extremely vulnerable against the size and weight of a moving vehicle. But, as a story out of Capitola Village illustrates, a pedestrian can be vulnerable in other types of collisions.
An 83-year-old Capitola woman suffered fatal injuries last week in a California pedestrian accident involving a skateboarder. The woman was out enjoying her daily walk at around 3:00 p.m. Tuesday afternoon. The woman was struck in an intersection by a 17-year-old man on a skateboard.
The woman stepped into a crosswalk in Capitola. The 17-year-old was cruising down a hill at an estimated 20 miles per hour. Authorities say a truck was stopped at the intersection, potentially blocking the skateboarder’s view of the woman in the crosswalk before the crash. Witnesses say the young man appeared to jump just before impact in an effort to avoid the collision.
The young man’s efforts were unsuccessful. The skateboarder crashed into the woman just after 3:00 p.m., knocking her down to the pavement. She was rendered unconscious in the collision. The skateboarder remained at the scene until emergency personnel and law enforcement could arrive.
The woman was taken from the crash site and flown to Santa Clara Valley Medical Center in San Jose. She suffered serious head trauma and internal injuries in the pedestrian accident. The injuries proved to be fatal. The woman died just before midnight on the night of the accident.
A spokesman for the Capitola Police says skateboarding is illegal in the village. The young man was given a citation. Details of the accident reportedly have also been forwarded to the District Attorney’s Office for further review.
Source: ESPN, “Skateboarder kills woman in collision,” Keith Hamm 7 Jul 2011
