Woman struck, killed in crash involving NYPD car in Queens
NEW YORK -- A pedestrian was struck and killed in a chain-reaction crash involving a police car in Queens.
It happened around 8:30 p.m. Friday near Beach Channel Drive and Bay 32nd Street.
Rockaway resident Kevin Garcia was on his way home from work Friday night when he heard police sirens.
"I didn't know a person got hit until I went closer," he said.
Police say an NYPD patrol car with four officers inside was heading to an emergency call with their lights on and tried to pass a Toyota Corolla on Beach Channel Drive that was waiting to make a left turn.
"I feel like it was a split second," Garcia said.
Investigators say the driver didn't see the patrol car and made the turn into the path of the cruiser. The NYPD vehicle then struck the Corolla on the driver's side front door. The impact sent the cruiser into a 52-year-old woman who was standing in a bike lane.
Police say that cop car then skid onto the sidewalk and went right into a vehicle in a parking lot. That parked car, they say, was unoccupied.
"When I saw the impact after, the police got out the car and went to go take care of the woman to give her CPR," Garcia said.
As Garcia got closer, he learned the woman wasn't moving.
"From there, we said a prayer. God bless her and her family," he said.
The victim was taken to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead. Her identity has not yet been released.
Garcia was told the victim was a home attendant on her way home from work.
"The lady that she was taking care of, her kids came, got a sandwich, because I work as a cook ... She said it was her nurse," Garcia said.
The Rockaway resident couldn't sleep Friday night.
"I felt bad for the lady. I saw it with my own eyes. I felt, like, traumatized. It could have been me," Garcia said.
Police say the driver of the Corolla was not injured, and the four officers suffered minor injuries.