A young man was seriously injured on SE 82nd Avenue – and one of two people crossing SE Stark Street was killed – on a dark, rain-blown evening. Find out why …
His sneaker and jacket remain in SE 82nd Avenue as evidence, while police investigate the accident that seriously injured a teenager.
Story and photos by David F. Ashton
Torrential wind-blown rain falling after nightfall is blamed on two different incidents in which pedestrians were struck by vehicles, after crossing major streets in outer East Portland on November 20.
It was already dark by 6:45 p.m. when a teenager dashed from the Fred Meyer complex eastbound across SE 82nd Avenue near Foster, just south of SE Raymond Court.
Looking south on closed-off SE 82nd Avenue, police investigate the car-vs.-pedestrian accident.
“Traffic investigators determined that a 16-year-old boy was struck by a northbound vehicle as he ran across the street,” reported Portland Police Bureau (PPB) Public Information Officer Sgt. Pete Simpson.
“The victim is suffering from life-threatening injuries, and was transported to a Portland hospital,” Simpson added.
SE 82nd Avenue remains closed while police look into an accident that seriously injured a 16-year-old boy.
For reasons yet unknown, Simpson said, another young man who crossed at the same time as did the victim fled the scene.
“The driver of the vehicle who struck the victim immediately stopped and rendered medical aid to him,” Simpson said.
Police say the driver of this car stopped, rendered aid, and was not issued a citation in this incident.
The driver cooperated with investigators and it does not appear that drugs, alcohol or speed were factors in the crash,” Simpson later reported. “No citations have been issued at this time.”
Death in a Crosswalk
Even the swift work of medical first-responders couldn’t save the life of a pedestrian struck crossing the street in Hazelwood.
Then, about ninety minutes later, in the Hazelwood Neighborhood, a vehicle struck an elderly couple in the crosswalk across SE Washington Street and SE Stark Street at SE 108th Avenue.
“The report came in at 8:22 p.m.,” Simpson said. “In this case, PPB East Precinct officers responded to the report of two pedestrians struck by a car.”
Police and medical emergency workers closed off eastbound SE Washington Street and began caring for the man and woman lying in the rain-soaked roadway. They were quickly prepared for transport and taken to OHSU – with the woman reported as suffering life-threatening injuries.
The Portland Police Bureau Traffic Division Major Crash Team van comes to investigate their second tragic pedestrian accident of the evening.
“Traffic investigators determined that both people were crossing SE Washington Street, in a crosswalk, when they were struck by an eastbound vehicle, driven by an adult female,” Simpson later said.
The crash occurred during a heavy downpour and investigators determined that the driver was not impaired by drugs or alcohol and was not speeding.”
This image, supplied by friends to the media, is of 71-year-old Ksenia Aleksandrova and 70-year-old Pavel Krivolenkov.
The following day, Simpson reported that 71-year-old Ksenia Aleksandrova had died of her injuries; and 70-year-old Pavel Krivolenkov had been upgraded to “fair” condition.
On dark, rainy nights, it’s sometimes difficult for even very alert drivers to see pedestrians crossing busy streets, Simpson told reporters.
“Drivers need to be extra vigilant, due to lowered visibility and glare from headlights,” Simpson observed. “At the same time, pedestrians need to be aware that being in a crosswalk will not protect them from vehicles – and to look out for oncoming cars.”
© 2012 David F. Ashton ~ East Portland News
click here to subscribe
