West Hartford Police said Thursday that the pedestrian who was taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries after being hit by a motor vehicle on Wednesday evening has died. [Updated, Dec.. 22]
By Ronni Newton
West Hartford Police said Thursday evening that a man who was stuck by a motor vehicle on Mohegan Drive on Wednesday shortly after 5 p.m. has died as a result of his injuries.
Police identified the victim as Carlos Galarza, 60, of Bridgeport, CT. This is the second fatal injury to a pedestrian in West Hartford this week.
Galarza received medical aid at the scene from emergency responders, and was transported to a local hospital in critical condition, with life-threatening injuries, police said on Wednesday.
Police said the driver involved remained at the scene and has been cooperating with the investigation being undertaken by the West Hartford Police Department Accident Reconstruction Team. Connecticut Occupational Safety and Health (CONN-OSHA) was also notified of the situation to determine whether or not the incident was work-related.
This is the third major incident in West Hartford involving a vehicle and a pedestrian in the last few days, the second fatality this week, and the third since June.
On Saturday, a pedestrian was transported to a local hospital with serious injuries after being hit by a vehicle on South Main Street near Memorial Road. On Tuesday evening, also right around 5 p.m., 89-year-old Eugenia Yurovsky of West Hartford was struck and killed in a hit and run collision near the intersection of Boulevard and Whiting Lane. Police are continuing to search for the driver who fled in what was appeared to have been a white or light-colored sedan.
On Wednesday morning, a group of 20 residents held a rally for safe streets at the site of the fatal collision the previous night.
Chief Vernon Riddick issued the following statement on Thursday evening: “The West Hartford Police Department and town officials are very concerned regarding all motor vehicle vs pedestrian collisions that occur in our town. The three most recent pedestrian collisions that have resulted in critical injuries and tragically two fatalities, are currently under investigation; therefore, the contributing factors to the causes of the collisions have yet to be determined. The West Hartford Police Department Traffic Division and the town’s Engineering Department will evaluate the contributing factors to these accidents, and then implement corrective action measures – including directed traffic enforcement.
“In the interim, I want to remind all drivers and pedestrians, to be aware of their surroundings, obey traffic laws, and avoid distractions while traveling on our roadways,” Riddick stated.
Anyone who has information regarding any of the incidents is asked to contact West Hartford Police at 860-523-5203, or via the anonymous tip line email 860-570-8969 or by email at [email protected].
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Our roads are too wide – designed as raceways for maximum amount of volume and speed. Enforcement will only work temporarily, and it’s expensive. Here’s a really good video explanation by a Connecticut engineer of why design is more important than posted speed limits: https://www.tiktok.com/@everydayengineering/video/7164373334753316139?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7033786349875660294