Fatal Pedestrian Accident Involving Drunk Driver

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A truck driver accused of hitting and killing a 78-year-old woman as she walked across the street is looking at serious charges. The mother of eight was walking to church Monday morning when she was struck by the truck driver near the interchange of Northwest 12th Avenue and 60th Street. Family members have identified the victim as Fannie Ash. She was a housekeeper at Cedars Hospital who recently retired. Fannie Ash was known as a hard worker who was dedicated to her family.

Authorities are reporting Ash was hit by a drunk driver, who at first fled the scene of the accident. The driver was urged by his family members to return to the scene. Miami Police Traffic Homicide Sgt. Luis Taborda confirmed the driver was arrested for DUI when he returned to where the accident happened. The driver has been identified as Howard Marty Leven. There was a field sobriety test conducted on Leven before he was arrested.

The victim’s family says they do understand mistakes can be made and accidents do happen, but they are going through a very difficult time right now and want to find some sort of closure. Howard Marty Leven is being charged with of leaving the scene of a fatal accident and DUI manslaughter.

Pedestrian Accidents Due to Driver Negligence

People who drive a vehicle need to exercise reasonable care under the circumstances. Not doing this is where negligence comes in. Examples of this include not yielding the right of way to pedestrians on a crosswalk, disregarding traffic signals, driving carelessly in poor weather and road conditions, failing to follow the speed limit, checking emails, texting while driving and driving under the influence.

Hit and Run Accidents

What can seem even more shocking than a car accident is when you realize the other driver is trying to leave the scene of the accident they may have caused. How could they do this? How could they not even care if you or anyone else in the car is ok or needs medical attention? A hit-and-run driver could have warrants for their arrest, operating a vehicle without insurance or driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Broward County Hit and Run Accidents Are on the Rise

Broward County was number two on the list of Florida counties with highest number of hit-and-run accidents. Even though Miami-Dade retains the top spot, their hit-and-run accidents decreased by a few thousand from the previous year; while Broward County hit-and-run accidents increased by 8% from 2011 to 2012. With reports showing that 3 out of 5 hit-and-runs involve pedestrians, what has also increased with these types of accidents is the number of fatalities.
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Swimming Pool Accidents :: Pool Safety Tips that Can Be the Difference Between Life and Death

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A family vacation took a tragic turn when a 6 year old boy drowned in one of the pools aboard a Carnival Cruise Line ship while at sea. Qwentyn Hunter was playing with his 10 year old brother, when suddenly he began to drown. There was a cry for help and the DJ announced there was a child in the pool. Passengers dove in to save the boy and pulled him out of the 4 ½ foot deep pool. Passengers were the first to administer CPR until Carnival’s medical team arrived – Carnival does not have lifeguards on its ships.

Witnesses say the attempts to save Qwentyn’s life lasted around the 20 minute mark. It is also reported that one of the parents was at the pool when he drowned. Witnesses said it happened so fast, by the time they got to him it was too late. It is unknown how long he was underwater. There are currently no laws requiring cruise ships to post lifeguards at their pools.

Swimming Pool Safety Tips

Florida loses more children under the age of five to drowning than any other state. The unintentional drowning rate was so alarming, that the Office of Injury Prevention developed a campaign to raise awareness and educate the public on pool safety tips.

A few simple steps can make all of the difference:

• Choose designated swimming areas (preferably with lifeguards present).
• Do not allow little ones to swim alone. Avoid this even if it is at a lifeguard beach or public pool.
• Make sure children learn how to swim well at an early age – there are various organizations and programs throughout South Florida.
• Never walk away and leave a child unattended near water. If you leave someone to watch them, make sure it is another adult and not another child. Water that appears shallow is often deep.
• Explain the dangers to young children and teach them to always ask permission to go near water.
• Have young children or inexperienced swimmers wear approved life jackets around water. Make it a point to also explain that having a life jacket on does not mean it is ok to be careless.
• Establish swimming rules for the family and make sure that you enforce them.
• Make sure to also set rules based on each individual person’s swimming ability. For example, a smaller child that may not know how to swim may have to stay on the steps of the pool, where others may not be able to cross a certain line or mark that goes into the deep side of the pool.
• Be careful walking by shorelines, lakes and rivers. Currents, temperatures and underwater hazards can make an accidental fall dangerous.
• If you are on a boat, please wear a life jacket. The majority of boating fatalities are drowning accidents.

Making the Pool Safer:

• Make sure to install barriers that enclose the entire pool area. They should at least be 4-feet high with gates that are self-enclosing, self-latching and open outward (away from the pool). The latches should be high enough so that small children cannot reach them.
• Move structures that can provide access to the pool. This can include outdoor furniture, decorative walls, playgrounds and climbable trees.
• If you have an inflatable pool, make sure to remove access ladders when it is not in use.
• Do not leave toys that are not in use in the pool. A toy can catch the attention of a young child and tempt them to reach for the toy.

In Case of Emergency:

• If a child is missing, check the water first. Getting there seconds earlier can prevent disability or death.
• Take a course on pool safety and learn CPR. It cost almost nothing and can be the difference between life and death.
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Amusement Park Accidents :: Rip Ride Rockit Reminds Us that Even the Biggest Theme Park Rides Can Malfunction.

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Universal Studios Roller Coaster ‘Glitch’ Strands Riders for Hours

Orlando is known for its theme parks. With Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure, Legoland, Sea World and Disney World’s four amusement parks; Orlando is home to many great roller coasters. For people who like a little height with their thrill rides, the tallest roller coaster in the state of Florida is the Rip Ride Rockit at Universal Studios. Standing over 17 stories high and currently holding world records for highest vertical lift hill and world’s first non-inverting loop, this ground breaking roller coaster is one of Orlando’s most popular rides.

Unfortunately, Orlando’s tallest rollercoaster recently came to a dead stop when a glitch caused the computer to go into safety mode and lock the ride. Twelve people were suspended in a midair vertical position over 150 feet high towards the top of the world record setting lift. It took nearly two hours for park officials to make sure the cars were in a locked position. Once they were able to confirm this, they gave the go-ahead for rescue crews to take the passengers down. This entire process took nearly three hours and left one woman with a neck injury.

Florida Theme Parks that Operate Free of State Safety Inspections

Many are not aware of the exemption that was originally written into Florida law for Walt Disney World and other theme parks. The exemption spares amusement parks from state safety inspections; leaving parks in a position to govern themselves.

Florida amusement park owners include:

• Walt Disney Company: Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, Animal Kingdom • NBC Universal: Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure, Wet ‘n Wild • SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment: SeaWorld Orlando and Busch Gardens Tampa Bay • Merlin Entertainment Group: Legoland
For an amusement park to qualify, it must have a minimum of 1,000 employees. If at any point the employment falls under 1,000, the park would become subject to regulation by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. The law requires the exempt parks to employ full-time in-house safety inspectors. The amusement parks are also required to file affidavits annually with the state certifying the rides have been inspected. With the major Florida theme parks being exempt, the State of Florida focuses mostly on carnivals, traveling fairs and smaller attractions.

Theme Parks May Not Be Reporting Every Injury

It is safe to say theme parks are more than motivated to keep things safe. They do care about their guests and would like to avoid the negative publicity that would result from an amusement park accident. Still, many feel that the state’s reporting requirements are not enough. The fear is that many parks underreport the number of accidents and injuries that occur. Even though underreporting is a problem in many states that have this law exemption for parks, there is no state worse than Florida. Busch Gardens even went through a span of over three years without reporting one single incident.
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