Nor’easter kills Brooklyn woman, 76, in freak flying solar panel tragedy
Officials said the dislodged solar panel flew about 20 feet before striking the 76-year-old woman.
The dangerous nor'easter storm walloping the East Coast of the United States claimed its first reported fatality on Sunday when a Brooklyn woman was struck in the head by a dislodged solar panel outside of an outdoor parking lot.
The 76-year-old woman was walking on a sidewalk on Ocean Parkway and West Brighton Beach Avenue at around 10:30 a.m. when strong nor'easter winds picked up a large solar panel from a nearby parking structure and heaved it toward her, video viewed by CBS News New York showed.
Officials said the panel flew about 20 feet before striking the woman. She was taken to a hospital, where she later died.
"We just hope that it doesn't happen to anyone else again. That's the most important thing. Safety first," the woman's son reportedly told CBS on Monday. "We're destroyed right now. We're at a loss for words."
"Hopefully nobody else gets hurt, let alone dies, because this is crazy," added Adam Rubenstein, who lives nearby the site of the accident. "My uncle lives in this building. I live in the next building, and it could've been anybody."
The National Weather Service issued high wind watches and coastal flood watches late last week in anticipation of the storm. The acting governor of New Jersey on Friday declared a state of emergency would go into effect the following night and persist through the weekend and early part of this week.
Tahesha Way warned that parts of the state could experience major coastal flooding, inland flash flooding, sustained winds up to 60 mph, localized rainfall up to five inches and "very high surf," according to a Friday news release from the governor's office.
“Starting on Sunday, a dangerous coastal storm will begin to move past our state with extreme weather conditions for several counties, especially those on the Shore,” said Acting Governor Way. “In preparation for this storm, I am issuing a State of Emergency for all 21 counties out of an abundance of caution, authorizing our state’s emergency services personnel to activate as necessary.
New York City has been under a wind advisory, with peak gusts in Brooklyn measuring 42 mph, according to unofficial calculations.
The Department of Buildings issued stop work orders and orders to vacate the parking lot on Monday, CBS reported. The agency also closed the nearby Q train station entrance and sidewalk.