Pedestrian struck and killed by car after celebrating lottery winnings
As pedestrian, Deborah McDonald, walked home from celebrating the arrival of her first check, a car struck and killed the Ohio Lottery winner. According to the Ohio Highway Patrol, the vehicle struck McDonald in the evening, as she walked along a road after leaving the bar.
The 47-year-old Crystal Rock, Ohio resident had reportedly spent some of the $5,520 check on wedding rings for herself and her husband shortly after receiving the winnings. Items the couple had been previously unable to afford. She had also treated her husband and some friends to dinner before heading to the bar to celebrate.
An Ohio Lottery spokesperson indicated that McDonald won approximately $8,000 in the lottery’s TV game show “Cash Explosion Double Play” on January 12.
Joe Wentworth, a patrol sergeant with area police, said investigators are looking into whether or not alcohol played a factor in the death. However, he indicated that police officials do not think the driver of the car who struck and killed McDonald was drinking.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 4,378 pedestrians were killed in traffic crashes in the United States in 2008. The NHTSA also indicates that a pedestrian-related traffic fatality occurs every two (2) hours, and a pedestrian is injured every 8 minutes in a traffic crash.
McDonald’s home state of Ohio reported 98 pedestrian fatalities in 2008, or roughly 8.2 percent of the nation’s total amount. These grim statistics remind us of the possibility of personal injury or even death resulting from motor vehicle accidents involving pedestrians.
The number of deaths involving pedestrians in Florida decreased, however, the number of injured pedestrians injured and pedesrtians in crashes saw an increase over 2007.
2008 Florida Pedestrian statistics from the NHTSA related to car accidents:
Pedestrians Killed 502
Pedestrians Injured 7,878
Pedestrian Crashes 8,471
2007 Florida Pedestrian statistics
Pedestrians Killed 530
Pedestrians Injured 7,529
Pedestrian Crashes 8,139
The NHTSA reminds pedestrians and drivers alike to be safe and courteous, and to yield the right-of-way to pedestrians when required by law.
Click the following link to read the 2008 NHTSA Traffic Data Fact Sheet
Click on the following link to read more on the story from the Miami Herald Associated Press article, Ohio lottery winner received check on the day she died.
