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While Crossing Delancey, Woman Fatally Struck by SUV
By
Jen Chung
Published Feb 1, 2008
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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By
Jen Chung
Published Feb 1, 2008
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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Late Wednesday night, an 82-year-old woman crossing Delancey Street at Allen was fatally hit by an SUV driver. The driver, who was traveling west on Delancey, stayed on the scene was not charged with a crime.
The Daily News says the woman, Josephine LaPlaca, was known as the "Queen of Delancey Street," because, as one person put it, "She knew everybody and everything about the neighborhood. It's going to be weird without her." Relatives said LaPlaca had lived in the neighborhood since she was 11 years old. Her niece said, "We used to tell her to come live in Queens, and she'd tell us, 'No. I'm going to die in New York.' It's a shame to live to 83 to get hit by a car and die."
Delancey Street and its intersections are very dangerous, given the cars that are speeding to and from the Williamsburg Bridge. Last year, blogger John Carney was clipped by a car on Allen Street and Delancey; he suffered a severely broken leg. And if you look at Transportation Alternatives' CrashStat map (pictured), you can see that there are many injuries and fatalities along Delancey.
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Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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