Tragic Accidents and Crime in New York

In some respects, New York is similar to other large cities attracting both unusual and tragic human behaviors that can lead to accidents and crime in New York. Tourists and residents alike should stay alert and use common sense wherever they go. Avoid unpopulated and unlit stretches, especially after dark. Don't carry large quantities of cash. Avoid the parks at night, and be extra careful around transportation centers, where pickpockets are often at work. Stick to the major streets.

If you drive in New York, check out how reckless driving by youths lead to car accidents and how poor tire pressure can cause serious blowouts.

Also avoid being a potential target for crime in New York when traveling the subways by not wearing flashy, expensive jewelry. During off hours, wait for your train in the well-lit waiting areas near the token booths. When your train comes, sit in the center car, which has a conductor. And finally, if you become a target of a tragic accident or crime in New York, contact Seeger Weiss, highly regarded personal injury attorneys who can help you sort out damages and get justice.

Below we spotlight tragic accidents in New York, but to truly get the true essence of New York, we also share a sampling of the most unusual accidents that brought 2010 to a close and tragedy that ends happily.

Central Park Tree Branch Falls, Kills 6-Month-Old Baby Girl, Injures Mother

A 6-month-old baby girl was killed and her mother was injured when a tree branch in Central Park snapped and fell on them as they posed for a family photo.

Gianna Ricciutti was in the arms of her mother, Karla, when the branch fell, police said. The mother and daughter from Union City, N.J., were posing for a picture at the Central Park Zoo taken by the girl's father.

"The entire family is in a state of shock over this tragic accident New York, and they can't stop crying," relative Suzanne Fastow told the New York Post.
Source: DNAinfo.com

Backup Operator was not in Place to Avert Horrible Ferry Accident

One afternoon the Staten Island Ferry--3,335 tons of steel the length of a football field--smashed into a concrete pier at 17mph, slicing the boat open like a sardine can. The disaster, which killed 10 of the 1,500 aboard and injured 65, was New York's worst maritime accident in generations. Assistant Capt. Richard Smith, the 55-year-old veteran pilot apparently lost control well before reaching berth.

Meanwhile, authorities want to know why the ferry's captain, Michael Gansas, who was supposed to have been at Smith's side in the wheelhouse, was apparently somewhere else on the boat.
Source: Newsweek

Person Suffers Serious Facial Burns in Upper East Side High-Rise Fire

A person suffered burns to the face after a fire broke out inside a residential high-rise on the Upper East Side during a nice evening to a tragic accident in New York. Four others, including one firefighter, suffered less serious injuries in the fire and were brought to New York-Presbyterian Hospital in stable condition.
Source: DNAinfo.com

Robbers Break through Wall in Chelsea Diamond Heist ON Christmas Day

Police released a video of three burglars who knocked a hole into the wall of a building next to a Chelsea diamond store and used it to ransack the shop's jewelry on Christmas Day and committed crime in New York.

At about 4:53 p.m., the three suspects entered Ultra Diamonds on 707 Sixth Avenue through the hole in an adjacent building, then took an undetermined amount of jewelry from the glass display cases and safe, police said.

The three crime in New York suspects then exited the diamond store from the same hole in the wall that they had entered through, according to police.
Source: DNAinfo.com

Man Admits Using Frying Pan, Cord to Kill Woman Found in Suitcase, Prosecutors Say

A violent ex-convict charged with the gruesome murder of a woman found stuffed inside a suitcase on an East Harlem sidewalk told authorities he committed crime in New York by strangling the victim with an electrical cord before disposing of her belongings and dumping the body.

"The defendant then said that after striking her twice in the head with the frying pan she managed to wrap an electric cord around his neck but he ... was able to gain control of the electric cord, wrap it around her neck, and cause her to pass out. .. [he] stated shortly after she passed out he discovered she was dead. A tragic crime in New York indeed.
Source: DNAinfo.com

Basketball Star Talks About East Harlem Shooting

Seton Hall basketball star Jeremy Hazell felt lucky to be alive after getting shot during an attempted mugging crime in New York outside of his East Harlem home. Hazell, 24, was shot in the side, under his armpit, while running away from four men who tried to rob him outside the Carver Houses on East 104th Street.

One of the men threatened to shoot the 6-foot-5 forward if he didn't sit on a nearby bench. Hazell shoved the man and took off running, the News reported. He said four shots were fired and one of them struck him in the side.
Source: DNAinfo.com

Horror Movie Strangler Gets 25 Years for Killing Pace Student

A man who strangled a 19-year-old Pace University student out of boredom and then watched a horror movie next to his corpse was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for his crime in New York.

Cancel was found guilty in November of strangling Pravia and then watching the movie "Hostel" afterward on Aug. 30, 2008. Pravia was a gay Massachusetts native living in New York, preparing to begin his second year at Pace University.
Source: DNAinfo.com

The Sky—or in the Case the Roof—is Falling

Three men were injured as they scrambled to get away from a 3,600 pound stone that slid off a tower atop the New York Capitol's roof during restoration work. The New York accident occurred after the stone masonry company had just finished placing the stone, about the size of a desk, on top of one of the roof's eight towers. A gust of wind blew a strap attached to the crane, which had been used to lift the stone into the tower, back underneath the stone. When the crane pulled away from the tower, it pulled the strap and caused the stone to slide off. The New York Capitol took more than four decades to build, and restoration work is ongoing.
Source: The New York Times

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