Woman ejected from car, dies in Flushing crash

Wet roads and impatience led to death in Flushing, as the second of two collisions at the same intersection proved fatal to an elderly woman.
In the mid-day hours on Friday, November 9, a late-model Saturn hatchback was traveling on 43rd Avenue in eastern Flushing, driven by an elderly man, whose wife was riding in the back seat.
As they crossed 167th Street, their car was rammed by a late model Toyota Camry, which according to some at the scene, had slowed down but not stopped at the sign controlling northbound traffic.
In the resulting collision, the Saturn was spun violently, and when it hit the curb on the northeast corner of the intersection, the elderly woman, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was ejected through the passenger-side window.
She struck a brick wall at the corner, and died in the ambulance, despite the best efforts of paramedics to stabilize her condition so she could be transported to a hospital.
The cold drizzle on that day resulted in a damp road surface which made it hard to find tire-marks which might have revealed more of the speeds involved, but the tragic loss illuminates one point: even in the back seat, seatbelts save lives.
“It’s terrible around here” said one long-time resident of 167th Street who did not offer her name. “The cars on the way to Northern Boulevard (northbound) see the traffic light there and speed up to make it. They go right through the stop sign like crazy people.”
At many intersections in that section of Flushing, the avenues are uncontrolled -only the streets have Stop signs. The sign at 167th and 43rd is clearly visible, as is the traffic light a block north at 167th Street and Northern Boulevard.
According to police at the scene, an earlier “fender bender” at the same intersection did not result in any serious injury.