Pedestrian Death at College and Woodward

(C. Proxmire, June 18, 2013)

A pedestrian was struck and killed by a vehicle on Woodward Avenue at College on Tuesday morning. The accident took place at approximately 8:45 a.m.

The accident took place in front of Tim Hortons, with customers and employees watching. Employees later in the day were briefed on the situation.  “A woman was crossing Woodward and she got hit and was killed.  It was a crime scene.  They taped it off and marked the ground where her body was. My boss said it was terrible.  I can’t even imagine,” said an unidentified employee.

The markings remain on the pavement, circles labeled A-J identifying places where the woman’s body and belongings were found by police who arrived at the scene.

Baron Brown of the Ferndale Police Department provided the following statement:

“On June 18, 2013 at approximately 8:45 a.m. Ferndale Police officers were dispatched to the area of north bound Woodward Avenue near College Avenue to investigate reports of a pedestrian struck by a motor vehicle.

“Upon arrival, officers located a 70 year old female resident of the city of Ferndale laying in the left lane of north bound Woodward Avenue.  She was unresponsive and officers began first aide on the injured victim.  Ferndale Fire Rescue responded and transported the victim to William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak where she was pronounced dead.  The victim’s family has been notified.

“Several witnesses reported that the victim had crossed the busy intersection against a red signal and walked into the path of a 2003 Buick driven by an 80 year old resident of Durham, North Carolina.  Witnesses also reported that other motorists had narrowly missed striking the victim as she walked into traffic.

“The driver of the striking vehicle was interviewed by a detective and released.  At this time alcohol is not considered a factor in the crash nor has an arrest been made.  The investigation is on-going.”

Brown said that this is the first pedestrian death he is aware of this year.  The City of Ferndale works with Traffic Improvement Association to collect information on accidents.

For information on the most dangerous spots in Ferndale and previous fatal accidents, check out our previous story at http://oaklandcounty115.com/2013/02/06/crashing-in-ferndale-report-shows-accident-rates-causes-and-more/