LAKE COUNTY, FL – One person died and another was seriously hurt following a three-vehicle crash on State Road 44 in Eustis Tuesday evening.
According to WFTV, the fatal crash happened around 6:30 p.m. on State Road 44 near Donna Vista Place. A 22-year-old Sanford man was driving westbound in a Nissan Altima when he crossed the center lane into oncoming traffic.
He sideswiped an eastbound Honda Accord and then crashed head-on with an eastbound pickup truck.
MARION COUNTY, FL – A man died after he was struck by a driver in a pickup while riding a mini-bike in Marion County Monday morning.
According to the Ocala StarBanner, the crash happened near Northeast 42nd Street and Northeast 16th Avenue around 6:40 a.m. A driver in a pickup was headed westbound when he collided with the eastbound mini-bike and fled the scene.
34-year-old Justin McCullough of Ocala was arrested for leaving the scene of a crash involving a fatality.
MARION OAKS, FL – A 17-year-old girl died after a collision with a driver in a cement truck on County Road 484 Friday morning.
The teen was driving a Toyota Camry east in the outside lane of County Road 484. At the same time a driver in a cement truck was traveling west when they entered the left lane to turn left onto Southwest 27th Circle.
It was then that the truck slammed into the side of the Toyota, reports the Ocala StarBanner.
OCALA, FL – Students were injured after a serious school bus collision in Marion County on Wednesday reports WSVN.
The crash happened as the school bus driver was stopped with the lights activated to let students off near Ocala. As several students were exiting the bus, a 34-year-old driver in a tractor-trailer slammed into the bus.
A total of ten students were on the bus. Five were taken to the hospital, with two of the victims in serious condition.
OCALA, FL – A 90-year-old man was fatally struck by a driver while crossing a road in Ocala on Wednesday morning.
According to News6, Eugene Aldrich was attempting to cross the roadway near the 2200 block of E. Silver Springs Boulevard. A westbound driver was in the outside lane attempting to merge into the inside lane when they struck the man.
The victim was taken to an area hospital where he died of his injuries.
OLDSMAR, FL – A 6-year-old girl was killed, and her mother and sister were injured, after all three were struck by a driver at an intersection in Oldsmar Saturday evening.
According to the Tampa Free Press, a 40-year-old woman and her two daughters, ages 10 and 6, were attempting to cross the street at the intersection of West St. Petersburg Drive and Bayview Boulevard.
A driver in a Nissan Altima was traveling westbound on West St. Petersburg Drive when he struck the three as they entered the roadway.
ZEPHYRHILLS, FL – A Canadian man died from injuries sustained while skydiving in Zephyrhills earlier this month, reports WFLA.
33-year-old James Southam of British Columbia, Canada was solo skydiving at Skydive City near Zephyr Pines on March 17th, when he suffered major injuries while attempting to land.
Southam was rushed to Lakeland Regional Hospital, where he was pronounced dead a short time later.
SUMTER COUNTY, FL – A motorcyclist and two other people suffered critical injuries after a serious multi-vehicle crash in Sumter County Friday morning reports the Villages News.
The incident happened around 6 a.m. as a 49-year-old Sumterville man was riding a Harley Davidson south on US-301 toward East Belt Avenue. A 50-year-old woman from Bushnell driving a Chevrolet Colorado was traveling in the opposite direction when she made a left turn in the path of the Harley.
The man was ejected from the motorcycle and was not wearing a helmet. The woman left her pickup to help the man in the roadway but was hit by a driver in a GMC Envoy. A 62-year-old Summerfield man was driving the GMC which also struck the motorcycle.
Around 11 p.m. on Thursday, a teen boy (14) fell to his death while on the Free Fall ride at ICON Park in Orlando, according to reports from police at the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.
The teen was taken to Arnold Palmer Hospital, where he passed away from his injuries suffered on the ride.
Reports indicate that on Thursday night, some ride passengers had discussed issues with the seat restraints on the Free Fall ride. Later that evening, the ride was creeping up the tower when the teen fell from the ride.
What is the Free Fall ride at ICON Park? The ride boasts that it is the world’s tallest free-standing drop tower that stands 430-feet tall and reaches speeds of about 75 miles per hour. Free Fall can hold up to 30 passengers and rotates riders around the tower and tilts towards the ground before it free falls.
According to reports, the Slingshot Group operates the ride and is cooperating with investigators as they look into what went wrong Thursday night. Free Fall and an adjacent ride called Sling Shot will now be closed indefinitely.
This is not the first incident at ICON Park. In September 2020, an employee of the theme park died after falling about 50-60 feet from the StarFlyer attraction. The StarFlyer attraction is a 450-foot-tall swing ride attraction that spins double-seated passengers at 45 miles per hour.
If you incur injuries or lose a loved one from an amusement or theme park ride, you need to know your rights. Our Orlando Roller Coaster Accident Lawyers at Whittel & Melton can help you file a personal injury or wrongful death claim. Amusement and theme parks, such as ICON Park, have a duty to its guests and visitors to keep its attractions and premises safe for everyone. However, accidents can and do happen, but who is to blame?
Amusement parks have a team of lawyers fighting on their side to defend them against any liability when someone is injured or killed at their park. This is to help them escape any responsibility from claims of negligence or product liability, and their most common line of defense is called assumption of risk. This is the concept defined as engaging in risky activity (riding a rollercoaster or other type of ride) even though a person knows the activity is inherently dangerous. However, this is not a blanket defense and sometimes does not fit. If a ride passenger gets on the Free Fall ride, they are likely not anticipating that their seat belt restraints will fail, resulting in personal injury or wrongful death. When something like this is the case, assumption of risk will likely not be applicable. After all, who would think that a safety restraint system would fail on a vastly popular and widely-used attraction? Continue reading
LITHIA, FL – A man was killed after hitting an alligator while driving on a Lithia roadway Thursday morning.
According to the Tampa Bay Times, 59-year-old John Hopkins from Lithia fatally crashed on Balm-Picnic Road, 2 miles west of County Road 39. He slammed into the 11-foot gator, which caused his vehicle to go off-road and flip into a ditch.
Hopkins was pronounced dead at the scene. The gator also died.
