E-mail updates
Follow on Twitter
Subscribe to RSSView more videos at: http://nbcnewyork.com.
About 20 Good Samaritans rushed to rescue a woman and her two toddler grandchildren when they were run over by an elderly driver in a busy section of New York Friday afternoon, authorities and witnesses said.
The 77-year-old driver was backing up on a street in the Bushwick area of Brooklyn when he hit the grandmother, identified as Elizabeth Castillo, and the toddlers, who were in strollers, according to witnesses.
The driver seemed to panic when he felt the impact and hit the gas pedal, further reversing the car up on the sidewalk and through a chain-link fence.
"You saw the carriages go straight underneath" the car, said witness Kim Miller.
Bystanders quickly rushed to the victims' aid and gathered around the car that had pinned Castillo and the children, 3-year-old Tyrese and 17-month-old Tashia.
"The babies were under there, so about 20 of us got together, lifted up the car and dragged everybody out," Edwin Padua said.
"Everybody's voices came out, 'Lift the car up!'" said a neighbor who gave his name as McRae. "We started proceeding to lift the car, and we got some of them out."
'I love them for doing that'
Castillo suffered a broken collarbone, and Tashia had a broken arm, according to family. Both children received cuts.
All three are in Bellevue Hospital in stable conditions.
Tashia's father, who watched video of neighbors on the bustling block rushing to help, told NBC 4 New York that he was touched by their heroism.
"I love them for doing that. I love them for doing that," he said.
The driver told police he thought he'd stepped on the brake when he was reversing. But friends of the victims were angry.
"A person has a license, he's been driving for 20 years, he should have the decency to stop," Tyrone Jackson, a family friend, said. "You should have the decency to check your car before you stick the key in the ignition."
More content from NBCNews.com:
- Friendly fire killed Border Patrol agent, sources tell NBC News
- Video: ‘Coking’ accounts for loose seats, airline says
- Unemployment rate dips for veterans, but not ex-servicewomen
- 2,000 gone in Afghanistan: Did you notice the death of Sgt. Riley Stephens?
- Teen calls 911 to report mother, sister dead: 'I hate the feeling of killing someone'
- LAPD chief: We'll stop holding some undocumented immigrants for feds
Follow US news from NBCNews.com on Twitter and Facebook
Leave a Comment:
I am glad that everone is alive. But this story brings up the question, when should a person stop driving....is it a age (i.e. over 75?) or the ability of the person who is driving? I have noticed that there have been a few reports of older drivers causing terrible wrecks and just wondering. I know that a lot of people will say that it is the ability of the driver, but as a person grows older their ability to drive seems to go away. So should an older person lose the right to drive just because they are older?
I think that when a person reaches a certain age, they need to be reevaluated on a regular basis for driving acuity. It has nothing to do with discrimination, but addressing normal changes that accompany aging. Also, people with certain medical issues should be prohibited from driving, such as seizures, severe anxiety attacks, or any condition that can happen suddenly and impair judgment. If their condition is controlled by medications, there is no way to monitor compliance to such a regimen, therefore, still a high risk.
State of Wis. people with seizure disorder must remain seizure free for an extended period of time, and get clearance from state review board in order to drive.
Ella,
Driving is not a right as you claimed. It is a privilege, and like any other privilege, it is subject to certain conditions, or that privilege is taken away. A simple solution to problems such as these would be the drivers license tests (both written and road test portions) be re-taken and passed periodically (every 10 years or so) to maintain ones driving privileges.
Revoke his license, and take away his keys before he kills someone the next time. I know some people in their 90s who are safe drivers, and some (many) in their teens and 20s who are just an accident waiting to happen because of their drinking and drug abuse. Myself, I am 70 but know the difference between a gas pedal and brake pedal. I should add, perhaps, I've known a lot of seniors who knew it was time to quit driving and sold their car or gave it to a younger relative. Driving is a privilege, yes.
Why are the victim's friends angry at the 77 year old driver? Some young drivers drive horrible and they think their driving skills are fine.
Ella,
I understand your frustration but statistically young drivers are far more dangerous. Consider the following statistics from the NHTSA:
While I agree that older drivers can sometimes be impaired, either due to slower reflexes and response times, or from medical reasons or medications, I would think that the first step in increasing safety and preventing accidents would be to concentrate on the statistically most dangerous group. That is not to say that there isn't room for improvement at all age groups.
Back to the main topic: It is truly refreshing to see a little good news being reported. So glad that the woman and her grandchildren are ok.
Ella, I would say that there have been a lot of reports lately around the country, not just a few. I watch most of these drivers and they have huge cars like Buicks, Fords, and the old Mercurys. Nothing against the individual auto makers, but I do see the huge old tanks that are harder to control. I am 66, I used to love driving and it was common to put 30,000 miles on a year going on assignments around the country. Driving is getting to be a chore and I now put on less than 10,000 a year, probably closer to 5,000 miles now. I know it is not a age or physical health decesion in most cases, but it should be evaluated physcologically or perhaps in a philosophical light considering the fear mongering perpetrated by Our Government and The Media.
Ability of the individual, not age.
Look at all these people blaming the guy for hitting the gas. I'm willing to bet NONE of you have ever looked at any accident statistics. Otherwise you would know that hitting the gas instead of the brakes is not uncommon. I doubt he intentionally hit the gas. You can see plenty of recorded accidents on youtube videos where drivers launch there car into the other car because they accidentally hit the gas instead of the brake.
"A person has a license, he's been driving for 20 years, he should have the decency to stop" - yea good job Tyrone... You get him. I'm sure he was trying to flee the scene....
Well, I'm afraid if my family got backed over or run over by someone I might be a bit upset. Jo Ann, why would you be surprised they were upset? What should they be right now?
And statistically I would say yes, concentrate on that group, but I think if a doctor or family see a person shouldn't be driving it needs to be handled, whatever the age. If my child weren't responsible and well trained (as much as you can train a new driver) she wouldn't be driving, and if my parents were alive and I felt they really couldn't drive any more I would talk to their doctor and make sure s/he understood the situation, and I would call the DMV if necessary to see if I could do anything.
Absolutely agree with Allen, ability, not age.
I'm so glad the grandmother and the two toddlers weren't killed and that their injuries are, all things considered, minor.
This issue may be solved in the very near future. Some newer cars park themselves, have automatic braking features, can sense other vehicles ahead of them and adjust their speed to match...experiments in driver-less technology have been very successful. The driver-less car is just around the corner. While those of us used to being in control will resist it, newer generations will embrace the luxury of being able to relax while their car carries them, accident free, to their destination. A generation or two down the road a vast majority of people will never have to learn to drive and those who actually drove a car will be guests on talk shows to explain the ancient "art" of driving an automobile.
Truck drivers will be some of the first to lose their jobs to this new technology. Huge trucking companies WILL take advantage of driver-less technology to save money by never needing a driver. Vehicles used for transporting goods won't even need space for a driver. These new trucks will look mighty different from what we are used to seeing today.
My goodness people this was an accident. Until you have walked in this guys shoes don't string him up from a tree. It was an accident and I know of people in their 30's who have gotten so upset during an accident they made a mistake.
How about the inability of younger drivers to make correct decisions? Can we re-evaluate that also......... you know, maybe not give anybody a drivers license until they are 35? It rubs both ways.
@sighber
Your right! We will have driverless cars at some point in the future. However, its very distant. I could see eveyone owing all electric cars before driverless cars, and we are no where near that either.
When renewing your license, driving tests should be mandatory for any and everyone every 5 or 10 years. It's not always age that is the problem but reflexes slow tremendously for many people as they age. I remember taking my mother to the DMV to get her license renewed and she was 89 years old. She couldn't drive when she was 39 so 89 was a definite no-no, but they gave her the renewed license without blinking an eye. All she had to do was pass the vision test. It's scary out there when you know this is a common practice for the DMV.
Teen drivers are no better......They scare the hell out of me also. With texting, make-up, friends, and ext.
In the first place driving is NOT a right it is a privilage and if you can't drive properly do that PRIVILAGE should be taken away from you because a car can either kill or mame.
I think you should no longer drive the day you run over someone because you didn't look in the rearview mirror or smash through a postoffice. Regardless of age.
Sam,
I may be over-estimating, but two generations, roughly 30 years from now, driver-less vehicles are likely to be very common. We already possess most of the technology to implement driver-less vehicles.
Electric vehicles are a novelty that makes everyone feel good about being "green". Check into the manufacturing side of the cars and think about the massive and messy business of producing the billions of large batteries necessary for everyone to drive electric cars and the "green" part of the equation breaks down. The rare and precious metals necessary to build enough batteries to power every vehicle aren't available. We need some other innovation in order to move away from petroleum powered vehicles.
Bio-technology may hold the answer mankind needs to be able to maintain the mobile lifestyle we have become accustomed to. If we don't find an answer the future will be radically different, probably unimaginably different from what we believe it will be.
Nissan just unveiled their driverless car and they are hoping to have it on the market by 2015. Also it is electric.
Angeline,
I'm not surprised. If I had the chance to buy a driverless vehicle, I'd do it in a heartbeat.
Remember, in order to put the car in reverse, the brake pedal must be pressed (unless its manual). Notice in the video that the brake light goes on (look at the center brake light in the rear window). That brake light is ON when the car reverse lights go on. That brake light is also ON when the car accelerates into reverse. If the glove don't fit, you must acquit!
Age don't mean much, some 70ish drivers do better than your teen drivers,
The truth is Drunk Drivers hold the title to largest amounts of death per ca-pita.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNi17YLnZpg
nuff said... Its gonna be at least 100 years until fully driver less cars are used at all.
Sam,
a single youtube video isn't relevant. Failed tests are always part of development and are routine. Experimental driver-less vehicles have successfully navigated through heavy traffic and a wide variety of commonly experienced traffic and weather conditions. Driver-less technology will be gradually integrated into the vehicles we drive everyday. The self-parking car, auto-braking, and other forms of it are already on the road.
100 years? Your estimation of how quickly we progress technologically is mysterious considering how quickly we went from horses to walking on the moon and using robots to explore the surface of Mars!
Consider the robots/rovers traversing a planet that is a mere red dot in the night sky. Robots that are not autonomous but that are controlled remotely. Remotely operating a rover on another planet is far more difficult than implementing driver-less technology here on Earth.
Hey MSNBC, "Good Samaritan" is a Biblical term ... you'd better watch out! What the God are you doing! You can just go to the God with those remarks. I know, I know, the God made me do it! Hope you keep making those kind of mistakes to illustrate what is still good in this country and where the inspiration comes from!
I'm glad everybody is ok.A person's doctor should be the one to determine when it is not safe for a person to drive any longer.Let's take a look at Lindsey Lohan..Then of course there is Brandy.Neither are senior citizens and they both lack good driving skills.
The longer someone drives, the more a natural muscle memory develops. Then one day without warning that connection with the brain can be dislodged.
One solution is to require cars be equipped with more sensors and computerized driver assistance abilities. Just these things cost money and are more likely in expensive luxury cars. I know we live in an era of people resisting government regulations, but as these technologies becomes better, it may be worth the fight to overcome the right-wing Tea Party Libertarian blow-farts and do what is correct and sensible.
I'm 61 and am a good driver but I would love a self driving card.I would be able to read while the car did all of the work.
I like your comment, just a cleaning lady. I am 62 and told my husband when I don't feel comfortable driving any more, I'm swapping my driver's license, car and car insurance, as well as the cost of repairs and maintenance for those comfy taxi rides. That way, I can see what's going on around town instead of just being surprised (i.e., "That's a new place!" [me] "No, that's been there for at least 5 years!" [friend]).
I've been saying it for years..."they need to re-test every so often once people hit a certain age". Hell re-test everyone if you want. Don't really think it would make much of a difference here in NJ, as it seems they will just give anybody old enough a license anyway. And some states do have restrictions on certain illnesses, I have a friend who can't drive because he has seizures, and he's 32. Also, sam1938777 is right, it is very common for people to hit the gas instead of the brakes when they are panicking. Glad everyone is gonna be okay here.
A fact it seems most of you are not aware of: BY LAW A DOCTOR IS MANDATED TO REPORT
EVERY PATIENT TO THE STATE (ALL) THAT HE/SHE FEELS SHOULD NOT BE DRIVING, OR IS DIAGNOSED WITH A SPECIFIC CONDITION.(I.e. Seizures)
I know this because of a boating accident many years ago in which I suffered serious injury. I am currently 49 yrs old, and due to the accident, I have numerous medical problems and take several medications. I live on my own, no family within 700 miles, and there is no easily accessible public
transportation. Because of all of that, and knowing I am dependant on being able to drive, I was fearful of losing my license, or insurance refusing to continue my auto coverage. Therefore I extensively researched the matter and even consulted various Doctors. That is how I found out that if a Doctor feels a patient should not be driving, but does, the Doctor is duty bound to report
that matter. Or if there is a certain diagnosed medical conditions that can be unpredictable, such as seizures etc. they must report that patient, no exceptions. In the later medical situation, the Doctor must report it, but each state handles these specified conditions differently. Such as some states will suspend license, or restrict it etc. based on patient and the control of the condition, such as no seizures for xxx years. If it is not for a specific state required mandated condition, (such as seizures), A Doctor also must report any patient he feels should not drive because doing so might possibly be a safety hazard, and potentially harmful to themselves or others. If I could not drive,
it could be detrimental. I noticed myself that on days when my balance is worse, my depth and peripheral perception is unreliable, and therefore on those days I don’t drive. Additionally I have realized other days, such as increased pain, tremors etc. affect my driving, and therefore don’t drive on those days either. In fact I have put less than 2000 miles on my car in over two years. My Doctors have not reported me due to (many rescheduled appointments) detail discussions concerning my fears, dependence on being able to drive, and knowing how much I restrict my
driving. (I am probably over cautious!) The only transportation assistance available is one vehicle and stays booked. I have had to go days sometime without eating and other necessities since I was unable to drive. I don’t qualify for any other assistance, just the disability transportation which has standing booked appts for patients with regular treatment schedule. Only spot would have to be booked in advanced, drop off (like store) 9:30am with pick up after 2:30pm. This is nonconductive to grocery shop. I used to tip out pizza drivers to do a quick stop for me, they are now no longer allowed to do that, and I can’t afford to tip out anymore anyway. got a little off subject but….
***I do think there should be some type of retesting skills/reaction time. (Maybe with driving simulators, so no large additional personnel cost. In fact I think it would be a great idea to be able to have a place with simulators available for people to check there skills periodically. (I've wanted to do that so I can see the reality of my skills, not just my interpretation) Maybe even get insurance discount as a ‘tune up’ skill, yet let people take at will every so often with no fear of reprisal with DMV or Insur. Then every so many years, maybe annually after a certain age, must take proof of passing ‘skill test’ in order to get your license renewed.
***I do not know a single person who hasn’t at one time stepped on the wrong pedal, even for a second. (Not saying caused accident) If anyone can honestly say they have never done it, they are not being honest with themselves!
************Thankfully everyone escaped without serious injury. I know the Driver feels absolutely terrible. My prayers go out to all involved.
********THANK YOU GOOD SAMARATINS FOR YOUR PROMPT LIVE SAVING HELP!
Sun Oct 7, 2012 9:26 PM EDT
To Ella. What selfish comment. Who gave you the right to judge? You have no idea what happened. You should be ashamed of yourself. It's people like you who make me want to vomit. How can you live with yourself. I just pray to God that maybe you are a bit cuckoo and don't know what you're saying. The nerve of some people.
First, your comment that "we have no idea what happened" is simply not fact: We read the story (did YOU?), so we, indeed, have a very good idea what happened, and why.
We have the right to judge her driving because we share the road with this dangerous driver. She clearly had no business behind the wheel.
I do see your problem though: A belief in a mythical, non-existent being (I would note that if it were any other imaginary being, you would be in a mental ward). You might want to get help for that, and you were clearly a LOT more judgmental than Ella-193705 was.
Kevin, so you believe everything you read?
No, but I believe this, and at least I can read.
Kevin, nice try but she is a he in this story
Judd you sound like the type that should not be driving.
I read the story, and this character named Judd is so ready to jump into things about which he is not qualified to talk. He is very quick to make a comment on Ella, and I would bet that he is a worse driver than she is. First off, he infers that she doesn't know what happened-- apparently he can't read. If he can't read, he has no business driving because part of driving is the ability to read. Another part of driving is rational thinking.
I'm not perfect-- started driving in 1955 and have had two accidents in that time. In one, the other driver had gotten a ticket for DUI about three blocks from where he ran into me according to the cop (who was the one who had ticketed the guy.
Judd- There was just another case last week where an elderly driver ran over a 4 yr old and killed him. She thought she ran over a branch or something and took the car to a body shop. On the news one of the workers there saw the police were looking for this car with front end damage and it was the same car. Not all people who are over 75 are reckless drivers but people should be tested because they don't realize their judgement is impaired. My mother in law caused a 4 car accident because she thought she had plenty of space between the car in front of her but her depth perception (we found out after) was way off and she had macular degeneration and didn't even know it. Its simply a fact of life and its wrong to put other people in danger because they can't face the fact maybe they shouldn't be driving anymore. Mandatory testing would help to weed out those who should no longer have a license.
We may not have any idea what happened, but regardless of that the driver said that he thought he hit the brake.
If after several decades of driving you can forget which side the brake is on and are not fast enough to react to the mistake then you are obviously an impaired driver.
If that's the best excuse the driver can come up with his license to drive should still be in question
I had a landlady who rear-ended two cars because she had macular degeneration and couldn't see them. Her nephew stopped by our apartment one day and told us he had taken the spark plugs out of her car, and asked us not to tell her. Even after hitting two cars, she refused to stop driving, until her car wouldn't work anymore.
All of you that are so sure that your interpretation of what happened based on a story on the internet are truly gullible. The person that wrote the story was probably no where near the accident site if he even is in this country. If you look at the original story the writer didn't even check his spelling.
Too many people are ready to crucify someone based on an internet story. The "facts" vary slightly between the original story and this one. How can you be so sure you have all the facts and the driver was just a bad person that should not be driving.
First of all this was an accident until it is proven otherwise. Then you have to look for contributing factors like were the people walking in a blind spot. I know I taught my kids at an early age if a car is moving get and stay out of the way. Was the car on an angle that would prevent the driver from seeing them?
There are plenty of possible issues that were not addressed in the article and I believe that if you really look at it you would see that you do not have all the information to determine exactly what happened and why. If you did the Police would just go by internet articles rather than doing investigations.
Just because it's on the internet does not mean it's correct or complete. How would you like it if you were the driver and you were being judged not on the complete facts but what is reported by some guy that can't spell driver. The first article has it as drivere.
Wonderful how everyone came together to help. What a great example of people working together, most especially in a crisis situation. This could have been so much worse.
gm chefaz,
must be a slow weekend good news is seldom reported. but i agree completely
I agree - and what's so refreshing is that I bet those 20 people were all of differnt colors, dif religions, dif nationalities, and differnt political "parties"...
Ella's comment is not selfish but is quite balanced. My mother drove well for years without an accident. She is now 76. We stopped her from driving when it became obvious that she was losing concentration. She drove through a junction with my daughter as passenger one day. Also at night she started driving in the middle of the road. after that happened a number of times we gave her a driver, my eldest sister. She can still get about without the family having to worry she will kill herself or someone else.
I think the words elderly and panicked explain why the driver didn't stop question is when should a person have their driving privileges taken away. Did the driver simply have an accident or are his perceptions so off he should stop driving and who and how is that decision reached.
Judd, Instead of being insulting, realize this. Granted older citizens do need to feel independent, there comes a time when you are Physically incapable of controlling a few hundred pound of heavy machinery. My Stepfather, who is in his 70s, is slowly realizing that fact and does not drive at night. My grandfather voluntarily surrendered his license when he realized how bad things were getting.
My grandmother refused to drive after a bad accident in her teens.
People NEED to realize that you need to be able to control this piece of heavy machinery.
There have been too many accidents of late where people do panic or get confused and hit the accelerator instead of the brake...
Of course THAT can happen to any age group, especially in an emergency.
A fact it seems most of you are not aware of: BY LAW A DOCTOR IS MANDATED TO REPORT
EVERY PATIENT TO THE STATE (ALL) THAT HE/SHE FEELS SHOULD NOT BE DRIVING, OR IS DIAGNOSED WITH A SPECIFIC CONDITION.(I.e. Seizures)
I know this because of a boating accident many years ago in which I suffered serious injury. I am currently 49 yrs old, and due to the accident, I have numerous medical problems and take several medications. I live on my own, no family within 700 miles, and there is no easily accessible public
transportation. Because of all of that, and knowing I am dependant on being able to drive, I was fearful of losing my license, or insurance refusing to continue my auto coverage. Therefore I extensively researched the matter and even consulted various Doctors. That is how I found out that if a Doctor feels a patient should not be driving, but does, the Doctor is duty bound to report that matter. Or if there is a certain diagnosed medical conditions that can be unpredictable, such as seizures etc. they must report that patient, no exceptions. In the later medical situation, the Doctor must report it, but each state handles these specified conditions differently. Such as some states will suspend license, or restrict it etc. based on patient and the control of the condition, such as no seizures for xxx years. If it is not for a specific state required mandated condition, (such as seizures), A Doctor also must report any patient he feels should not drive because doing so might possibly be a safety hazard, and potentially harmful to themselves or others. If I could not drive, it could be detrimental. I noticed myself that on days when my balance is worse, my depth and peripheral perception is unreliable, and therefore on those days I don’t drive. Additionally I have realized other days, such as increased pain, tremors etc. affect my driving, and therefore don’t drive on those days either. In fact I have put less than 2000 miles on my car in over two years. My Doctors have not reported me due to (many rescheduled appointments) detail discussions concerning my fears, dependence on being able to drive, and knowing how much I restrict my
driving. (I am probably over cautious!) The only transportation assistance available is one vehicle and stays booked. I have had to go days sometime without eating and other necessities since I was unable to drive. I don’t qualify for any other assistance, just the disability transportation which has standing booked appts for patients with regular treatment schedule. Only spot would have to be booked in advanced, drop off (like store) 9:30am with pick up after 2:30pm. This is nonconductive to grocery shop. I used to tip out pizza drivers to do a quick stop for me, they are now no longer allowed to do that, and I can’t afford to tip out anymore anyway. got a little off subject but….
***I do think there should be some type of retesting skills/reaction time. (Maybe with driving simulators, so no large additional personnel cost. In fact I think it would be a great idea to be able to have a place with simulators available for people to check there skills periodically. (I've wanted to do that so I can see the reality of my skills, not just my interpretation) Maybe even get insurance discount as a ‘tune up’ skill, yet let people take at will every so often with no fear of reprisal with DMV or Insur. Then every so many years, maybe annually after a certain age, must take proof of passing ‘skill test’ in order to get your license renewed.
***I do not know a single person who hasn’t at one time stepped on the wrong pedal, even for a second. (Not saying caused accident) If anyone can honestly say they have never done it, they are not being honest with themselves!
************Thankfully everyone escaped without serious injury. I know the Driver feels absolutely terrible. My prayers go out to all involved.
********THANK YOU GOOD SAMARATINS FOR YOUR PROMPT LIVE SAVING HELP!
- Sun Oct 7, 2012 9:26 PM EDT
To JUDD - I think you are the wackoo. If you read Ella's posting, she is ASKING a question. A question is one method of provoking THOUGHT to a situation. Actually she asked several questions. RE-read her posting again.
Whatever. It's okay for you to judge me but it's not okay for me to judge someone?
It's okay for you to judge, and it's okay for others to judge your ability to judge.
Based on comment #2, I judge your ability to judge to be sadly lacking in judgement.
kudos mach, .........you may have a cookie......................:)
( when you slow down naturally}
Why don't you just tell us what's really bothering you?
Mmm...cookie! Thanks!
Aside from the obvious questions about the driver's ability to drive, what struck me about this
story, was the 20 strangers that came to the rescue. We STILL have to believe, (to quote a line
from LORD OF THE RINGS) "There is still some good in this world, and its worth fighting for."
God bless the GOOD people who are truly heros.
i agree and was so glad to see the community response.
It's good to read about people helping others in their time of troubles. It is especially good that they were successful. I see stories often where old drivers hurt or kill people because they're not up to the task of driving safely. I know I'm less of a driver than I was when I was young and I intend to quit driving when I am not up to the safety standards that I should be. As we age our opinions of how we are doing is skewed by our perspective of our own abilities. It is up to those around us to stop their elders from driving past the time when we are no longer safe. Many will not agree that they should no longer drive. It isn't worth a single injury or life to let them continue and if that means being retested or giving up driving privileges at a certain age so be it.
agree, such a decision is very difficult, yet very importaant.
my father is 84 and still does limited driving. he, also climbs 100' plus tall trees to trim them and even reposition his sw antenna, which he uses to communicate around the world, catching skips, using an old time morse code key tapper. he obviously has his senses and coordination, but all concerned decided restricted driving is in order. at this point in time, he is fine with it as he is only comfortable driving during certain hours and certain places these days.
People often say New Yorkers are rude and uncaring. I lived in NYC many years ago and have visited often since. I have experienced and seen many acts of kindness and helpfulness there. These guys are the rule, the creeps and schmucks are the exception.
thank goodness the PEOPLE of NYC were there and not some cops.
good job and quick thinking.
people love to complain about NY'ers being rude and uncaring...I am so proud to be a NY'er
a comment was made that you should check to see if your car is in gear before starting. what an ass of nine statement. because the cars are equipted with safety neutral switches they will not start in gear.
face it,if it were not for the by-standers this could have been quite deadly. they are what makes america great.they went to the rescue of strangers. but,maybe some of them knew the victims? it does not matter.they banded together and lifted the car and removed the victims.
good work nyc,good work.
Do you mean asinine?
I think he was using the popular statement of "ass OF nine", kind of like "eyes of march" or "donssearly light".
I tell you what, if I did this I would never drive again. I would realize that my judgement is evidently impaired at my stage of life and start taking taxis. I hope this gentleman does that same.
God bless the wonderful bystanders that helped the victims to safety. I guess there's some hope in humanity after all...
pretty much always been there, just not considered "newsworthy" , course some jackwagon will be along shortly to "fix" that.
Stupid old man....when you get to that age, have someone drive you around!! Thought he stepped on the brake is no excuse!!
stupid young man....until you get to that age , have someone drive you around!! still wet behind the ears is no excuse!!.............................:)
reno:: Thought he stepped on the brake is just something old people do? Boy you are lacking brain matter between your ears. I have seen pictures of someone crashing into a building-- a young man-- and his excuse was "I thought I had stepped on the brake". I have also read about it-- in fact, one such incident happened not far from where I used to live. The young man was going to buy something at a convenience store-- did enough damage to have bought a lot of stuff at the store.
I'm over 70 and still drive-- DURING THE DAY. And I don't go anywhere that is miles away unless I have to, and that is maybe 5 times a year. I have had to hit my brakes because of some young person on a cell phone and not stopping at a stop sign or yielding to oncoming traffic. My reflexes are still good enough to be driving.
Susie2759697: Yep, can't stand the verbage nerds like you use: "Boy you are lacking brain matter between your ears"....sounds like something coming from a 12 year old!! You're still a risk on the road!
suzie speaking her observation of the truth is offensive to you ?
she kindly pointed out the stupidity of the OP's post. which it was.
that said, yes there comes moments, when driving restrictions are needed, eg. i have 4 employees under the age of 30 and 3 of them are on driving restriction.
Once again the American people came threw and saved two children and their Grandma. I get goose bumps reading this and articles like this. As for the elderly driver, i send my prayers for your victims and for you. For our elderly their car can and often is their life line. They need their cars for food, medicines, Doctor appointments, visits and Emergency's. One can only imagine the fear that they all felt when this accident happened. I don't have an answer for stopping these accidents. I wished i did. All I can do is be thankful no one was killed.
This happened in NYC which has some of the best public transportation around as well as many taxis that can be hailed or car services you can call. A senior who can't drive has many good ways to get around.
I understand that seniors want their independence, but their right to that ends when they become a danger to someone else (and themselves). Many seniors are on multiple medications that impair their ability to drive. Others have mental issues such as alz, parkinsons or dementia. We need to retest every other year past the age of 75 because often, a situation can change quickly based on medicines or illness. We need doctors to have mandatory reporting if they believe the senior is a danger on the road. We need to make it easier for family members to get the keys away from someone who should not drive. My 85 year old mother hit 4 parked cars one day and a week later drover through her closed garage door and part of the structure. No one could tell her not to drive and she did not care that she was endangering others since she had terminal cancer (and died within a month). Just because someone is older does not make them cuddly and sweet. Just because they had a good driving record their whole life, that does not mean they are fit to drive now and in the future. I tried to contact authorities (in NY) and there was nothing that could be done.
We all know young drivers are dangerous also, but that is another topic and is a deflection from the problem about senior drivers. There are programs in place and laws to deal with them. Maybe more should be done there, but that is not the subject of this story.
we as a family decided on driving restrictions for my 84 year old father. he actually prefers it that way.
fortunately our family is in a situation where this is possible. note, he is not without his faculties. even at his age, he will climb and trim a tree much taller than most so called professionals will, higher than i will and i grew up helping him. but he is much more relaxed and at ease driving during certain times.
@dianna, how is introducing the dangerous statistics of other demographics a deflection from the issue ?
the "ability to drive" aspects of these comments is concentration, focus, coordination and ability behind the wheel of a moving vehicle.
ONE OF THE GREAT THINGS ABOUT NEW YORK. THE PEOPLE
Where ever you go around NEW YORK there are people ready to help . Sure we have some village idiots but this is not an uncaring City. we don't have drive by killings like several cities or the fires of Detroit ,DC or Chicago.This is a tuff City and the tuff take care of their own.
This could have been a younger as much as it was an older person. The driver panicked, and anyone can do that, specially if they just heard a thump. There is no age limit on panic.
But the people who came to the recuse so fast are my neighbors. I live just a block over from here. I heard the accident (I was in our apartment up on the 13th floor) and was impressed at how fast they acted. That is why lives were saved.
Yes, older drivers should be re-evaluated every year or so. Abilities decline as you get older. But this was an accident, it could have been a teenager, a first time driver, too.
Actually, if you watch the video, he slammed into the car behind him-pretty hard - and THEN hit the gas even harder, instead of the brake. He panicked AFTER he had already rammed a parked car - he didn't panic when he hit the family; odds are, he never even knew what he hit after impacting the white car....
The impact to the white car showed he was not a good driver and then he compounded that by mistaking the gas for the brake...
(the article didn't describe what happened at all, really, it implies he was backing up and hit them, he put car in reverse by accident in the first place, hit a car and THEN hit the family.._)
do we know everything about the foot pedals in the old gents car ?
i run a shop that comes across all sorts of combinations these days.
a "favortite" aftermarket addition these days are very wide pedals to make it "easier" to drive the car. my experience is, these very wide pedals are very dangerous. eg. once, while backing one such equipped car into position, i had to move my right foot, 4 times to the left in order to fully clear the accelerator pedal on be fully on the brake pedal, before impacting what was behind me.
a few months later, a very similar thing happened with a car equipped with a similar set of after market pedals.
if you think i cant drive, ill be glad to meet you at any road course and give you a demonstration on lap times - professional road circuit drivers, this is not open to you, as you already know what im talking about.
Wonder what the comments would be here if the driver was a teenager and only had their licence for a couple of months? Im just glad everyone is going to be all right. Thanks to those who pitched in.
My comment would be to pull the kid's license until at least the age of 21 or pull the kid's license and provide a limited license at age 18. If one is incapable of handling a vehicle at any age, there is a need to remove the license and then provide a license on a probationary basis for a specific number of years.
Another argument fro mandatory driver testing starting at age 65. There are too many stories of some elderly individual panicking or hitting the wrong pedal.
65 is a little young. 70 and above, yes.
I would like to see retesting of all drivers every 5 years starting at age 16.
How great that the neighbors just rushed in and helped.
To know that there are still good and kind people in the world makes the day seem a little bit brighter.
I see cars weaving, crossing lanes and slowing almost to a stop in moving traffic, I look at them and they a using their CELL PHONE. distracted driving. And some seniors are just to old to be driving, their senses , reactions, are very poor and cause accidents. A relative should help out, I drive my inlaws