One of two people struck and killed by Caltrain cars in separate incidents on Saturday. Jayne Cox, 27, of Folsom, has been identified by the San Mateo County coroner as the woman killed at 12:13 p.m. Saturday near the Menlo Park station, after being hit by a southbound train. Approximately an hour earlier, a man who was on the tracks at the California Avenue station in Palo Alto was struck by a northbound train, according to transit agency spokeswoman Christine Dunn. The man has not been identified. The transit agency’s police force is investigating the cause of both deaths. Alexander Hawes, LLP is a nationally-recognized and award-winning personal injury law firm with offices in San Jose and San Francisco. We are passionate about our clients and our community. We are advocates for our clients and [...] Read more »
A bicyclist died Monday night when he was hit by two cars in Santa Rosa according to police. Frank Moreno, 49, of Santa Rosa was knocked off his bike by one car near the corner of Chatham Drive and Fulton Road at 6:45 p.m. and run over by another, said police Sgt. Lance Badger. The first driver fled the scene before police arrived and is wanted for hit-and-run. The driver of the second vehicle, Bianca Belle-Bonas 18 years-old of Santa Rosa, stopped and is cooperating with police, according to Sgt. Badger. Police have yet to determine which car killed Moreno. Police ask that anyone who saw the crash or has information call police at (707) 543-4108. Alexander Hawes, LLP is a nationally-recognized and award-winning personal injury law firm with offices in San Jose and [...] Read more »
Due to the serious risk of injury to babies, CPSC and Bumbo International Trust of South Africa (“Bumbo International”) are urging parents and caregivers to never place Bumbo Baby Seats on tables, countertops, chairs or other raised surfaces. Infants aged 3-10 months old have fallen out of the Bumbo seat and suffered skull fractures and other injuries. CPSC and Bumbo International are aware of at least 45 incidents in which infants fell out of a Bumbo seat while it was being used on an elevated surface which occurred after an October 25, 2007 voluntary recall of the product. The recall required that new warnings be placed on the seat to deter elevated usage of the product. Since the recall, CPSC and Bumbo International have learned that 17 of those infants, ages 3-10 months, suffered skull [...] Read more »
Yesterday marked the third death of a bicyclist or pedestrian struck by a car in the last five days. a vehicle struck and killed a bicyclist or a pedestrian in San Jose on Wednesday while a pair of other crashes left two men fighting for their lives, triggering police warnings to motorists driving home during what is now a moonlit rush hour. In the latest crash, a 67-year-old unidentified woman was hit on her left side by a Nissan Sentra while walking across the crosswalk of Jackson Avenue at Alexian Drive in East San Jose, police said. She died shortly after at the adjacent Regional Medical Center. Police are now urging motorists who had been commuting home in the sunlight to be extra careful now that it is getting dark earlier, and ask those on [...] Read more »
Beleaguered Japanese automaker, Toyota Motor, announced yet another giant recall for more than 420,000 vehicles in the US with potential steering problems. The recall affects 283,200 Toyota and 137,000 Lexus vehicles in the U.S., the company said. Worldwide it covers 550,000 cars. The recall only affects V-6 engines and will replace a defective crankshaft pulley. To date there have been no reports of accidents or injuries related to the problems, according to a news release from Toyota at their Southern California facility in Torrence. Since September 2009, Toyota has issued recalls covering more than 13 million vehicles in the U.S. With the company facing hundreds of lawsuits, safety experts and industry analysts contend that quality problems could haunt the world’s largest automaker for years to come, affecting its reputation and bottom line. Starting in January, [...] Read more »
The U. S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has launched important new features to the SaferProducts.gov Business Portal that make it easier and more efficient for businesses to work with CPSC. These changes are a key part of the agency’s overall information technology modernization effort. A new, comprehensive online form allows manufacturers, private labelers and importers to quickly submit required reports of potentially hazardous or defective products to CPSC. The online form makes it easier for businesses to report product hazards and to communicate information on consumer product safety issues with CPSC. Another improvement expands CPSC’s ability to correspond with all of the businesses registered on SaferProducts.gov using the Business Portal, instead of postal mail. All registered manufacturers, importers and private labelers identified in incident reports will now receive notices electronically, regardless of whether the [...] Read more »
Three bicyclists were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries after being struck by a vehicle on a mountainous Palo Alto road last weekend according to police. The collision which occurred in the 3900 block of Page Mill Road happened just before noon. Two of the bicyclists suffered moderate to major injuries and the other sustained minor to moderate injuries, police said. All three were taken to Stanford Hospital. The driver of the car was not hurt, police said. Police released few details about the crash Monday, but Sgt. Rich Bullerjahn said the vehicle was traveling west up Page Mill Road when it struck the descending bicyclists, who were all wearing helmets. The driver has not been arrested. The police department’s Serious Traffic Accident Reconstruction Team, or STAR, is investigating the collision. While the team has yet to [...] Read more »
The Consumer Product Safety Commission imposed the third largest toy-related this week against a California toy company that sold the defective and dangerous arts-and-crafts beads Aqua Dots, that were linked to a dangerous drug and sickened about a dozen children. The civil penalty, announced Thursday, was levied against Spin Master, Inc of Los Angeles, which imported the product in 2007. The Aqua Dots Toy Beads were recalled after tests showed they were coated with a chemical that, when ingested, can metabolize into gamma hydroxybutyrate (GHB), which is commonly referred to as the date rape drug. The compound can induce unconsciousness, seizures, drowsiness, coma and death. The toys consisted of tiny colored beads that stick together when sprayed with water to form designs. About 4 million of the kits were recalled in November 2007. THE CPSC [...] Read more »
A high speed police pursuit is the cause of yet another death in the Bay Area this time in Contra Costa County. The fatality occurred when police attempted to stop a man for talking on a cell phone while driving without using a hands free device. The incident began in Concord around 6 p.m. Tuesday when an officer saw a man in a white pickup truck talking on his cell phone without the required hands-free device and attempted to pull him over according to police. The man, who was later identified as Mauro Gutierrez, 25, of Concord refused to stop and led the officer on a chase. The pursuit ended when Gutierrez crashed into a 1985 BMW on Solano Way near Highway 242, police said. According to police Gutierrez was arrested after a short foot [...] Read more »
An elderly female driver suffered only minor injuries when her vehicle was struck by a Capitol Corridor train in the Decoto district of Union City this morning, according to an Alameda County Fire Department spokesperson. The accident which occurred at around 7:50 a.m., happened at the intersection of Railroad Avenue and H Street, spokeswoman Aisha Knowles said. The woman reported minor pain at the scene and was taken to a hospital as a precaution, Knowles said. None of the 102 passengers on southbound Train No. 523 reported any injuries and they were moved to another train, Capitol Corridor spokeswoman Luna Salaver said. Service from Sacramento to San Jose was delayed more than an hour as a result of the collision. The motorist got stuck in the railroad crossing between the crossing arm and the railroad [...] Read more »
