Nov. 20, 2023 By Bill Parry
A Briarwood woman was killed and a 73-year-old man was critically injured after they were struck by one vehicle and then hit by another in Woodhaven on Saturday, Nov. 18, according to authorities.
Police from the 102nd Precinct responded to a 911 call of a vehicle collision near Woodhaven Boulevard and Park Lane South at around 8:36 p.m. on Nov. 18. Upon their arrival, officers found Toni Budija, 71, of Main Street, lying on the roadway with severe head and body trauma. EMS responded to the scene and rushed her to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead a short while later, police said.
Her 73-year-old companion suffered head trauma and was transported by EMS to NewYork-Presbyterian Queens Hospital, where he is listed in critical but stable condition, according to authorities.
A preliminary investigation by the NYPD Highway District’s Collision Investigation Squad determined that Budija and her friend were attempting to cross Woodhaven Boulevard, walking westward near the southeast corner of Forest Park, when the driver of a 2017 BMW 430i, traveling southbound on Woodhaven Boulevard, swerved from the right lane to the center lane in an effort to avoid them but struck them both with the passenger side rearview mirror. The impact sent them both falling to the roadway where they were both struck by the driver of a 2014 Toyota Camry, which was also traveling southbound on Woodhaven Boulevard, police said.
The 23-year-old man who was behind the wheel of the BMW and the 22-year-old man who was driving the Camry remained at the crash scene and were not injured.
The NYPD Highway District’s Collision Investigation Squad continues to investigate the fatal crash.