Mike Rogalle, the UPS worker struck while on the job in Lower Manhattan last week, has died.
Rogalle was on the sidewalk near 15 Beekman Street at 4:39 p.m. on Tuesday, April 17, when the driver of a GMC SUV jumped the curb, striking him from behind. Witnesses described a horrific scene, with Rogalle trapped under the vehicle, his internal organs exposed, until he was freed by emergency responders. He was reportedly awake and talking when he was taken to Bellevue Hospital in critical condition. Rogalle died on Sunday. He was 58.
A resident of Teaneck, New Jersey, Rogalle reportedly worked for UPS for 39 years, 26 of them on the same route in the Financial District, where he was well-known and well-liked.
There were two adults and two small children in the SUV at the time of the crash, according to reports. The adult passenger, a man, was identified only as an FDNY inspector. The driver, an unidentified woman, was reportedly removed from the car by FDNY and placed on a backboard with a neck brace. All four people in the car were taken to New York Downtown Hospital, reports said.
Though all details point to a high-speed crash -- it would be all but impossible to "lose control" of a vehicle, jump a curb, kill a pedestrian, injure yourself and your passengers while adhering to the city's 30 mph speed limit -- Downtown Express reports that NYPD found "no criminality."
"How could you go fast here on these streets?" said a local to the Daily News. "There's stop signs, there's construction and congestion. Look at the height of that curb! How fast could she have been going?"
This fatal crash occurred in the 1st Precinct. To voice your concerns about neighborhood traffic safety directly to Deputy Inspector Edward J. Winski, the commanding officer, head to the next precinct community council meeting. The 1st Precinct council meetings happen at 6:30 p.m. on the last Thursday of each month at the precinct, 16 Ericsson Place. The officer we spoke with could not immediately confirm if tonight's meeting would take place as scheduled. Call the precinct at 212-334-0640 for information.
