One dead, 11 injured when car crashes into Austin emergency room
by Benjamin Treviño | February 15th, 2024 | Blog
A car crashed into an Austin hospital emergency room February 13, leaving the driver dead and 11 people inside the hospital injured. Police say the crash happened about 5:30 p.m. at St. David’s North Austin Medical Center.
Surveillance videos showed the car crashing through the emergency room’s glass doorway striking some patients inside as others ran off in panic.
The driver, 57-year-old Michelle Holloway, was extricated from the crashed vehicle, and was given CPR, but she died at the scene, according to Thayer Smith of the Austin Fire Department.
Four victims were transported to other hospitals, including an adult and a child who were in critical condition. One patient was admitted to St. David’s North Austin Medical Center, where the crash occurred. Officials did not give details on their conditions.
Austin-Travis County EMS reported that the remaining six crash victims did not have life-threatening injuries.
Two days after the crash, investigators had still not determined what caused Holloway to crash into the building.
Safety barriers and building crashes
According to the Storefront Safety Council (SSC), at least 60 cars crash into storefronts, restaurants, and other buildings every day in the United States. SSC also says more than 4,000 people are injured and 500 people are killed each year from storefront car crashes.
While many buildings have safety barriers in front of them to prevent these types of crashes, regulations on the barriers are virtually nonexistent. On top of that, there are no federal requirements for stores to have protective barriers in front of their buildings.
28% of building crashes are caused by driver error, with another 28% caused by vehicle malfunctions. Speeding was another factor in these crashes, according to the NTSB.
Modern safety barriers can help prevent car crashes from happening and may protect innocent bystanders from being injured or killed, but it’s important to note that just because a building has no crash barriers in front of it, that doesn’t mean the owner is negligent or liable when a car crashes into it and injures someone. Every case has its own factual circumstances.
Get expert legal advice
If you or someone you know has been injured by an automobile crashing into a building, call the J. Gonzalez law firm. Our team of personal injury attorneys can investigate the facts of your case to determine the best course of action FOR YOU. The initial consultation is free, so call us today at 1-800-CAR-CRASH.
