Young Boy Crushed By Out-Of-Control Car

A woman dropping off her son at a Corona elementary school Thursday morning lost control of her car, jumped a sidewalk and crushed a kindergarten student to death.
The tragedy unfolded outside PS 92 at 8:15 a.m., when Rosario Chauca, 42, attempted to maneuver her Toyota Camry out of a parking spot on 99th Street, which runs adjacent to the schools entrance. According to police, the driver thought she had put the car in forward but when she hit the gas pedal, the car went in reverse and careened onto the sidewalk, where Monica Orellana was walking her five-year-old, Christian Plaza, to school. Police said the out-of-control automobile pinned Plaza against one of the school fences brick pillars. As the car kept rolling, Plaza fell forward.
Witnesses said the aftermath was a gruesome scene. Leslie Pasato, a mother a six-year-old who attends PS 92 who witnessed the accident, said a man picked up the child, bleeding from the head, and placed him on the cars hood. Both Plazas mother and the driver were crying and screaming.
"The driver said she pressed her brakes," said Pasato, adding that she heard brakes screeching before the accident. "It is not her fault."
Police said Plaza suffered head trauma. He was taken to Elmhurst Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. No one else was injured in the accident. Police said Chauca was not charged and ruled it an accident.
Parents and children of PS 92 held a vigil for Plaza later that afternoon. Assemblyman Jose Peralta attended and spoke to Orellana, offering his offices assistance in any way. He also spoke to PS 92s principal.
Peralta called for more safety precautions on streets around schools. He reiterated City Councilman Hiram Monserrates letter to the Department of Transportation (DOT) this past March that suggested more speed bumps in school zones. DOT never answered the letter.
Passato said that it is typical for there to be traffic weekday mornings along the streets in front of PS 92, which lies off Northern Boulevard, as cars and buses stop and park along the street to drop off children.