New Orleans Pedestrian Accidents News

Once again, the Endymion parade is the source of a tragic fatality, but this time it wasn’t due to a drunk driver. It was due to a tandem float accident just like the one that happened a few days ago. WVUE reported on the incident. Thirteen floats has passed by, but the 14th float struck and killed an adult male on the parade route. It was a tandem float, a float with two trailers connected to each other, just like the one that killed a woman in the Crewe of Nyx parade. According to further reporting by NOLA.com, the man was also trapped between the sections of the float and got crushed. He attempted to jump to get an object from the float, then landed on beads and slipped under the wheels. Witnesses tried to pull the man free and stop the float, but their cries could not be heard over the noise. The accident happened near Canal Street and Galvez Street. In response to the two accidents, the Mayor announced that all tandem floats will be banned for the remainder of the Carnival season. Many of the crewes have tandem floats that stretch in multiple sections, and Endymion has the longest of them all with nine connected sections. The remaining crewes are working to gather the tractors needed to separate their floats and hold their parades as planned.

There are many signs and lights near schools telling drivers to slow down and watch for children and buses, but there is also another sight you can see just before and after school. Traffic guards help guide traffic and help them avoid children crossing the road. Small children may be too short for drivers to see clearly from their cars. Unfortunately, sometimes crossing guards get hurt or killed in the line of duty. That’s what happened to a crossing guard at Lafourche Parish according to WDSU. The guard was directing traffic on Louisiana Highway 20 near Chackbay Elementary School when a vehicle struck and killed the guard. WVUE reported that the responsible driver was driving a pickup. The older man was wearing his seatbelt and submitted to toxicology tests at the scene. The incident remains under investigation by the police. We urge all drivers to take special care near school zones. We are not used to seeing people standing in the middle of crosswalks and the actions of children are unpredictable. A single moment of absent-mindedness can lead to an accident like this one. When approaching a school zone, slow down and keep a sharp eye out for anything out of the ordinary, especially if you’re driving a larger vehicle. The higher you are, the harder it is to see anything that’s close to the front of your vehicle.

One of the highlights of the Carnival season is to watch the krews give elaborate parades. On rare occasions though, these parades can be the scene of a tragedy. WWL reported on one that happened last night. An older woman was run over and killed in front of the parade crowd in the Krewe of Nyx parade near Magazine Street and Valence. The parade was stopped halfway over the incident. According to the police, the woman may have been trying to reach for beads from the float by crossing between two sections of it. Sometimes floats are built out of multiple trailers like this in a tandem formation. According to a witness, the woman tripped over the hitch and fell down, putting her in the path of the wheel. The witness presumed that the woman thought the float was not a tandem float and tried to run behind it to get beads. The first 20 floats were told to finish the parade, but the remaining 24 could not. The captain of the Krewe was devastated by the incident. Little is known about the victim, but many people in the crowd saw the accident, including children. Float-related accidents do not happen often, which makes this incident especially tragic.

For the third time in the past two weeks, a pedestrian has been killed in the metro area according to NOLA.com. They reported on the latest crash. The incident happened in Marrero on Ames Boulevard near Louis I Avenue. For reasons unknown, a pedestrian was in the roadway. He got hit by a truck driving on Ames and was killed at the scene. Police do not know if the driver was drunk, nor if they are going to press charges. Toxicology reports are pending and the pedestrian has not been identified. The earlier incidents involved two elderly men. One was killed in Laforche after he crossed the road in front of oncoming traffic. The other was walking on a highway in St. Tammany Parish when he was hit by a truck and died from his injuries. The fault in a pedestrian accident can come from either party, but the pedestrian has far more to worry about. Death is common in these accidents for obvious reasons. That’s why you must take care when walking on the roads, even if you’re on a sidewalk. If you must walk on the shoulder, walk against traffic and well away from the lines. Cross only at marked intersections and try to avoid walking at night.

Pedestrians may have the right of way on the roads, but they still must take precautions to remain safe. If a pedestrian acts unpredictably or can’t be seen by cars, a vehicle might not notice them in time to avoid a collision. NOLA.com reported on an incident that involved the death of a pedestrian who did not follow precautions. According to the police, a man was walking on Louisiana 21 near midnight. The elderly man was struck by a pickup and killed. At the time of the crash, the man was wearing dark-colored clothing and was walking in the middle of the lane rather than the shoulder. He was seriously injured in the crash and later died at the hospital. It is unknown if the man was intoxicated, but tests of the driver of the truck showed he was sober. He was also properly driving at the time. Walking along a highway is unusual enough, but to do so in dark clothing at night and in the middle of the lane is incredibly risky. By the time a driver’s headlights can reveal you, it will be too late for you or the driver to get out of the way in time. If you must walk at night, try to wear bright or reflective clothing and stay on the shoulder.

A common sight around universities is students walking around from building to building. Getting back to a dorm may require crossing a street. This sometimes leads to an accident, as in this case reported by WWL. At 10 PM on the 17th of January, a traffic collision happened near Dillard University. Specifically, it happened at the intersection of Gentilly Boulevard and New Orleans Street. A person was killed in the incident and at least one other was trapped according to initial reports. Police are unsure if this was an accident or a deliberate act. When you’re walking around at night, there are some precautions you can take to stay safer on the roads. The first step is to follow all traffic laws. Cross streets only at marked intersections and follow the lights. Even if the street seems empty, you never know when a car could sneak up. It’s also a good idea to wear bright clothing. Dark clothes make you much more difficult to see. This can be dangerous if you have to walk on a shoulder near traffic. Speaking of shoulders, try to walk on the side of the road toward traffic as much as you can. That way, you can see if a car is coming a little too close to you in advance.

Louisiana is well-known for its waterways. Water transport is the lifeblood of the state’s economy. But all that water also leads to certain problems. One of these is thick fog during particular weather conditions. When fog arises out of the spillways, lakes, and rivers, it can make it very difficult to see in front of you. This can lead to an accident, as what happened on the Pontchartrain Expressway near the Superdome yesterday. WWL reports. It is unknown why the pedestrian was on the expressway, but what is known is that there was a dense fog advisory for all of southeast Louisiana at the time. Visibility on the roads was reduced to one-quarter mile or less. The crash happened before 7 AM near Claiborne Avenue. The pedestrian suffered a head injury but it is unknown if it was life-threatening. No further details about the incident have been released. When driving through thick fog, slow down more than you think and avoid using your high beams. The water droplets in the fog can reflect your high beams back at you and reduce your visibility. Also, check your tail lights before you drive in thick fog. Your lights may be the only thing that cuts through it enough to warn other drivers in time to stop.

We usually associate 18-wheeler accidents with interstates, but they can happen on surface streets as well. They can even pull pedestrians into the mix. This is what happened in a case last month according to NOLA. The accident happened in Elysian Fields. The truck was heading lakebound on Elysian Fields Avenue making a right turn onto North Claiborne Avenue. A man was in the roadway at the time and was struck by the semi. He died at the scene. A nearby laundromat had captured surveillance video of the incident, showing the man walking by the truck before being struck. The driver pulled into a parking lot as soon as they could and reported the incident. The driver was allowed to leave the scene after speaking with investigators. Attempts to contact the trucking company by the news team were unsuccessful. Locals said that they had seen the victim walking often near the intersection, which is a popular one for walkers. The high ride height on a semi-truck can make it difficult to see objects that are too close to the front of the vehicle. We speculate that may be what happened in this case. Even though pedestrians do have the right of way, they must take caution when near big vehicles.

Louisiana is well-known for its waterways. Water transport is the lifeblood of the state’s economy. But all that water also leads to certain problems. One of these is thick fog during particular weather conditions. When fog arises out of the spillways, lakes, and rivers, it can make it very difficult to see in front of you. This can lead to an accident, as what happened on the Pontchartrain Expressway near the Superdome yesterday. WWL reports. It is unknown why the pedestrian was on the expressway, but what is known is that there was a dense fog advisory for all of southeast Louisiana at the time. Visibility on the roads was reduced to one-quarter mile or less. The crash happened before 7 AM near Claiborne Avenue. The pedestrian suffered a head injury but it is unknown if it was life-threatening. No further details about the incident have been released. When driving through thick fog, slow down more than you think and avoid using your high beams. The water droplets in the fog can reflect your high beams back at you and reduce your visibility. Also, check your tail lights before you drive in thick fog. Your lights may be the only thing that cuts through it enough to warn other drivers in time to stop.

We usually associate 18-wheeler accidents with interstates, but they can happen on surface streets as well. They can even pull pedestrians into the mix. This is what happened in a case last month according to NOLA. The accident happened in Elysian Fields. The truck was heading lakebound on Elysian Fields Avenue making a right turn onto North Claiborne Avenue. A man was in the roadway at the time and was struck by the semi. He died at the scene. A nearby laundromat had captured surveillance video of the incident, showing the man walking by the truck before being struck. The driver pulled into a parking lot as soon as they could and reported the incident. The driver was allowed to leave the scene after speaking with investigators. Attempts to contact the trucking company by the news team were unsuccessful. Locals said that they had seen the victim walking often near the intersection, which is a popular one for walkers. The high ride height on a semi-truck can make it difficult to see objects that are too close to the front of the vehicle. We speculate that may be what happened in this case. Even though pedestrians do have the right of way, they must take caution when near big vehicles.

Pedestrians may have the right of way on the roads, but they still must take precautions to remain safe. If a pedestrian acts unpredictably or can’t be seen by cars, a vehicle might not notice them in time to avoid a collision. NOLA.com reported on an incident that involved the death of a pedestrian who did not follow precautions. According to the police, a man was walking on Louisiana 21 near midnight. The elderly man was struck by a pickup and killed. At the time of the crash, the man was wearing dark-colored clothing and was walking in the middle of the lane rather than the shoulder. He was seriously injured in the crash and later died at the hospital. It is unknown if the man was intoxicated, but tests of the driver of the truck showed he was sober. He was also properly driving at the time. Walking along a highway is unusual enough, but to do so in dark clothing at night and in the middle of the lane is incredibly risky. By the time a driver’s headlights can reveal you, it will be too late for you or the driver to get out of the way in time. If you must walk at night, try to wear bright or reflective clothing and stay on the shoulder.