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Police are looking for witnesses in a Monday morning collision in Palo Alto where a driver struck a pedestrian who died the next day.
The driver, a man in his 60s, was heading west in a 2002 Ford F-150 pickup truck that struck a pedestrian in an unmarked crosswalk at the intersection of East Charleston Road and Commercial Street shortly after 10 a.m. on Monday, March 20, the Palo Alto Police Department said in a press release. The driver had stopped in front of a stop sign and prepared to make a right turn onto Charleston prior to the collision.
The pedestrian, a man in his 80s, fell backwards and struck his head on the pavement, according to the press release. The driver called 911, stayed at the scene and cooperated with police.
Officers and personnel from the Palo Alto Fire Department and the Specialized Traffic Accident Reconstruction Team responded to the scene. Paramedics took the pedestrian to a hospital, where he died on Tuesday. He was identified as 87-year-old Shaoyu Ming of Palo Alto, the Santa Clara County Medical Examiner-Coroner’s Office said Friday afternoon.
The cause of the collision remains under investigation. Police ask that anyone who may have witnessed the collision call the 24-hour dispatch center at 650-329-2413. Anonymous tips can be sent to the police department via email to paloalto@tipnow.org or via text or voicemail to 650-383-8984.
A tragic loss of life, and let’s pause to reflect on the impending affordable housing that the City and County are planning for the near future while mourning the loss. With not enough parking for residents, there will be a lot of people walking around to get to the few services available near there. I can’t imagine an 80 year old man was walking to work last Monday. There’s too few details about where he lived, but judging from the circumstances and google maps, one can make a few assumptions. Approximately .3 of a mile away from the collision, there will someday be nearly 200 people living close by with no nearby services, and with very low income to make transportation as affordable as the housing. I suggest at minimum to put up more stop LIGHTS instead of SIGNS and MARK THE CROSSWALKS. And I suggest doing it BEFORE breaking ground anywhere near where people are expected to live in what will end up being a disaster zone without some kind of traffic mitigation in place. And yes it’s going to make that section of road almost un-navigable. But we knew that before it was ever proposed.
This is very sad. Due to his age, it is likely that he lived nearby and often walked in the area. As the above comment noted, this is likely to happen in an area with so few amenities for those who live nearby. It is often safer to drive than to walk to get a cup of coffee or some fast food.
I hope you do a follow up when more information is known. Very sad, rip.