SOUTH RICHMOND HILL, Queens (WABC) — A woman was killed and another was injured in a crash at a notorious intersection in Queens Saturday afternoon.
The incident occurred at the intersection of the Van Wyck Service Road and Liberty Avenue in South Richmond Hill. The two victims were just crossing the street when a vehicle hit them.
Firefighters rushed to the scene, but they had to use a jack to lift the vehicle and get the lifeless woman pinned underneath.
Raj Maladkar was working nearby when the collision happened at 3:30 p.m. Police say a Toyota Scion, driven by a 58-year-old woman, was stopped waiting to make a left turn from Liberty Avenue onto the Van Wyck when a Mercedes-Benz driven by a 65-year-old woman slammed into the back, causing the Toyota to run over two pedestrians.
A 51-year-old woman was killed and a 34-year-old woman was taken to the hospital with head and neck injuries.
"She was crossing from here. Two women were crossing from here. Both got hit. But one was underneath the car and the other was on this side," said Maladkar.
The aftermath of the crash was so bad that volunteers at a nearby church dropped what they were doing and raced across the street to help the victims.
People who live nearby say the intersection is so dangerous, and this is not the first time they have had to jump into action.
"There's like of confusion with traffic and garbage trucks and other bigger vehicles that seem to just whiz by, they don't seem to obey the speed limit and a lot of people are driving and not paying attention. There should be police presence in this area to control the traffic," said Rick.
On Thanksgiving in 2022, a cyclist was killed by a truck in a hit and run near the same intersection.
"Number one — no one slows down," said Sabrina Ragoonanan.
"Loss is a hard thing especially when it's a family member. It could be someone's mother, sister or aunt," Ragoonanan added.
Both drivers stayed at the scene. No arrests have been made.
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