Harlem crash horror Pedestrian, 64, killed in smashup of livery cab and car
A livery cab fatally struck a pedestrian, sending him flying through the air, after an explosive crash into a car in Harlem on Sunday, officials said.
The black Honda livery cab was heading downtown on Frederick Douglass Blvd. when it struck a black Infiniti near W. 128th St. at about 1:00 p.m., leaving both cars mangled wrecks, cops said.
“I saw a black Honda flying. It tried to cut off the Infiniti. Instead they collided,” said witness Dameon Jones, 41. “When we heard the impact it was more like an explosion.”
The Honda then slammed into a 64-year-old man crossing the boulevard, cops said. He flew through the air and landed on a parked white car, witnesses said.
“He flew up past that light pole and came down,” Jones said. “That’s why the impact on that white car is so severe.”
The pedestrian died at the scene. His body, covered by a white sheet, lay on the hood of the car as cops investigated. His name was not immediately disclosed by police.
The 71-year-old livery driver and the driver of the Infiniti, a 27-year-old woman, were both taken to Harlem Hospital with serious injuries, police said. Nobody was immediately charged.
“The Honda was the aggressor,” Jones said. “He was aggressive on the road. A police officer even said to me, ‘I thought it was an unmarked (police) vehicle flying like that.’ But it was a regular civilian who decided to cut off the Infiniti and it cost the life of that guy. It’s sad.”
Quanisha Berry, 26, was driving down Frederick Douglass heading to work at a nearby gym when she witnessed the crash.
“I just seen a guy flying in the air,” she said. “He must’ve been 10 feet in the air. I didn’t even know it was a guy — I thought it was an object at first.”
“He was alive at first,” she added. “It looked like his eyes were twitching. He was bleeding.”
Neighbors said the sound of the impact was deafening.
“I just heard the impact — it was like thunder, really hard,” said Librado Torres, 44, a maintenance worker who lives nearby. “I walked over and saw the body. He was on top of the hood faceup. His right arm was sticking out. One of his legs was pointing out. His head was facing east. He wasn’t moving, nothing.”
Djata Toure, 14, rushed out of a nearby hair salon when she heard the crash.
“We heard tires screeching and everyone went out,” she said. “I saw an old man on top of a white car. His legs were twisted. His hands were twisted. He was in his socks. His black shoes were in the middle of the street.”
“Cops came, but I heard one say, ‘There’s no pulse,’ ” she added. “I was just shocked and emotional. I was crying.”