A report compiled by the National Complete Streets Coalition found that Florida leads the nation when it comes to pedestrian deaths. Of Florida cities, the Orlando-Kissimmee area took the number one spot. Between 2008 and 2017, Miami-Ft. Lauderdale had 1,549 pedestrian deaths, landing it in the number 14 spot. Nationwide, the report that pedestrian fatalities have risen, namely because people are driving more and driving larger vehicles. Street design is playing a role, with longer and wider streets with fewer crosswalks for pedestrians to cross in safety. This combined with a large beach-going population is one of the reasons that Florida is one of the deadliest states in the nation for pedestrians.
News 4 Jax reports on a driver who ran over a sunbather and fled the scene.
At about 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday afternoon, a woman sunbathing on a Nassau County beach was run over by a Jeep. The driver of the Jeep kept going, despite a witness pointing out that he had just run over the woman. The incident occurred on a section of beach located at Seaside Park near Sadler Road.
53-year-old Susan Jakuszewski of Akron, Ohio, was run over by a Silver Jeep Cherokee. She was rushed to UF Heath Jacksonville with broken ribs and a blood clot in her lungs. She is expected to survive.
Police were able to identify the Jeep using the Florida license tag and tracked it to a home on Pirate’s Way, less than a mile from the accident site. The man parked his car in the garage of the home next door and only came out to speak with police when the homeowner asked him to come outside.
He was identified as Gregory Lee Green. Green was arrested on a charge of leaving the scene of an accident with injuries. He was being held on a $50,000 bond.