Same Florida intersection claims 2 lives in 1 week

A 27-year-old man who tried to evade the Florida Highway Patrol was identified as the driver of the car involved in a fatal accident at a San Carlos Park intersection on Nov. 6. The man was trying to evade police who had tried to pull him over near Broadway Avenue and U.S. 41 at about 3 p.m. for a tinted window violation. The 1997 Chevrolet Cavalier flipped over onto its roof after speeding away and driving over a raised median.

When it flipped, the Chevrolet hit another vehicle, a 2005 Toyota Tacoma, but its driver was not injured. The 40-year-old passenger in the Chevrolet was pronounced dead at the scene, and the driver remains in critical condition at Lee Memorial Hospital. According to Florida troopers, charges against the driver of the Chevrolet are pending.

This was the second fatal accident to occur within a single week in the same location. Earlier in the week, a 35-year-old man was killed when a 1995 Dodge Ram struck him as the vehicle crossed the southbound lanes of U.S. 41. According to a Florida Highway Patrol report, the driver said that he did not see the man because of traffic in the other lanes.

The fatality in the Nov. 6 incident might be determined to have been caused by driver negligence as the driver of the Chevrolet tried to get away from the police. The passenger’s family may choose to seek compensation. The family of the man who was hit by the truck in the earlier incident might choose to research whether the road is unsafe, and, if the intersection is proven dangerous, they might also have a claim.

Source: Naples News, “Driver identified in Wednesday’s fatal accident”, November 07, 2013