POLICE BEAT
Pedestrian, 81, killed crossing Young Street
By Mike Leidemann
Advertiser staff writer
An 81-year-old woman was killed yesterday when she was struck by a car while crossing Young Street in Honolulu, police said. It was the third pedestrian traffic fatality in less than a week and the second in as many days.
Police said the woman was not in a crosswalk when she was hit at about 12:30 p.m. by a van driven by a 59-year-old Honolulu woman.
The pedestrian was taken to The Queen's Medical Center in critical condition and died a short time later, police said. The driver of the van was not injured.
Police said conditions at the time of the accident were clear and dry with medium traffic. Speed and alcohol were not considered factors in the accident, police said.
Meanwhile, the Honolulu Medical Examiner's Office identified the man killed in a pedestrian accident in 'Ewa on Friday as 75-year-old Floyd Girzen of 'Ewa.
He died after being struck by a car while crossing the street near the intersection of Renton Road and Auwaha Street, police said.
Yesterday's accident brought to four the number of people who have died this year in traffic accidents on O'ahu. Three of them were pedestrians. The third pedestrian victim was Rika Rosenberg, 72, who was hit by a car while sitting at a bus stop last Sunday.
Last year was one of the deadliest ones in a decade, with 90 traffic fatalities on O'ahu. There were 78 fatalities on O'ahu in 2005, 71 in 2004 and 75 in 2003. Transportation officials say an increase in speeding and reckless driving may be behind the rise in fatalities.
Reach Mike Leidemann at mleidemann@honoluluadvertiser.com.
