Hit-and-Run Pedestrian Accident Near Tufts
A woman flew into a car's windshield, then the car sped off, according to witnesses.
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A pedestrian was hit by a car shortly before 5 p.m. Sunday evening at the intersection of Powderhouse Boulevard and Packard Avenue, near Tufts University.
According to witnesses, the woman was crossing the street in the crosswalk when a car sped into the intersection, honked, then hit the woman.
"She flew up onto the windshield, they floored it and drove away," said Flavia, a Tufts student who witnessed the incident and did not want to give her last name.
Flavia and another Tufts student who witnessed the accident said they called 911. They said the car fled westward on Powderhouse Boulevard.
Another woman, who also did not give her name, was walking along Powderhouse Boulevard when she heard screeching wheels and saw the car speed off. The woman, an EMT, rushed to the intersection to help the pedestrian, who was on lying the pavement. She said the victim had a gash on her head but seemed to be okay.
Flavia said of the victim, "she was talking."
Somerville Police, Tufts Police, the Somerville Fire Department and EMTs responded to the accident. Police officers and firefighters at the scene chose not to make comments.
At about 5:05 p.m., as she was being loaded into the back of an ambulance, the victim appeared alert, though she had a bloody gash on her forehead.
In July, at this same intersection, firefighters had to use the Jaws of Life to rescue victims from an accident that sent three people to the hospital.
Warren Dew
10:31 am on Monday, January 23, 2012
I live two doors from this intersection. There is a very high accident rate - probably more than one per week, though most do not involve pedestrians - because cars tend to speed westbound on Powderhouse past Tufts field. In addition, the intersection is marked from that direction only by a single blinking yellow light that is partially obscured by branches - completely obscured in the summer when the leaves are out - and that is not visible from an adequate distance anyway because of the curve in the road.
A few years ago, they added redundant blinking red lights on the cross street, Packard, which somewhat reduced the number of vehicular accidents. However, the primary problem, westbound traffic on Powderhouse, has not been addressed. They need to add several redundant blinking yellows at a lower altitude so they are more visible, and perhaps an early warning sign with blinking yellows along Tufts field. Ideally, they would also change the right of way at the intersection, making it blinking red for Powderhouse and perhaps blinking yellow for Packard, or add a small traffic island in the middle so cars would be forced to slow down.
Chris Orchard
2:25 pm on Monday, January 23, 2012
Maybe it could even be a four-way stop, with a blinking red in each direction.
Alex
8:57 pm on Friday, February 3, 2012
As a point of fact, please do not call this event an "accident" until it is known that there was no foul play. It is a crash, a collision, a hit-and-run, but not an accident.