81-Year-Old Man Killed in Car Collision on Royal Palms and U.S. 1 Was 5th Pedestrian Killed This Year in Flagler

The U.S. 1-Royal Palms Parkway intersection. Education Way is in the distance, parallel to Royal Palms. (© FlaglerLive)
The U.S. 1-Royal Palms Parkway intersection. Education Way is in the distance, parallel to Royal Palms. (© FlaglerLive)

An 81-year-old Palm Coast resident on foot was killed in a collision with a car as he was crossing the road at U.S. 1 and Royal Palms Parkway early Saturday morning. The 20-year-old Daytona Beach man driving the car suffered minor injuries, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. The victim is the fifth pedestrian killed on Flagler County roads so far this year, representing a third of all road fatalities.

The driver, who immediately called the 911 dispatch center, was on his way to work when he reported that “a guy walked in front of him,” according to dispatch notes. The driver placed the initial call to 911 at 3:30 a.m.

The driver was distraught, screaming to the dispatcher as he described the victim in the road and oncoming traffic. Responders were at the scene within minutes and already aware that the victim would not have survived. He was pronounced deceased by a paramedic at 3:37 a.m. U.S. 1 northbound was shut down as was Royal Palms in both directions at that segment.

According to FHP, which is conducting the investigation, the driver was traveling north on U.S. 1 as he approached the intersection with Royal Palms. At that moment, the pedestrian was walking east across U.S. 1, “in the area of the marked pedestrian crosswalk from Education Way.” (The road immediately opposite to Royal Palms there is Education Way, the dead end that leads into the school district’s bus depot.) The driver’s sedan’s left front struck the victim.

Authorities conducted a voluntary blood draw from the driver. All roads were reopened to traffic by 8 a.m.

The fatality on Saturday was the 15th this year on Flagler County roads. Though the figure is considerably lower than the 24 and 27 road fatalities recorded in 2023 and 2022, five of the road fatalities this year were to pedestrians, or as many pedestrian fatalities as the combined total of the three previous years. of There have been 1,242 crashes recorded in Flagler County so far this year, 46 of them involving pedestrians. Fatalities included one cyclist and three motorcyclists.

Flagler County Traffic Crashes and Fatalities, 1990-2023

Year
Total Crashes
Fatalities
2023 1,453 24
2022 1,436 27
2021 1,468 16
2020 1,445 27
2019 1,431 11
2018 1,279 15
2017 1,190 33
2016 1,104 25
2015 1,377 12
2014 876 28
2013 1,063 16
2012 844 15
2011 620 22
2010 716 23
2009 715 16
2008 695 31
2007 792 16
2006 822 30
2005 805 20
2004 609 20
2003 508 17
2002 460 16
2001 326 16
2000 438 18
1999 382 16
1998 367 17
1997 382 13
1996 385 10
1995 360 11
1994 338 7
1993 307 10
1992 264 13
1991 274 10
1990 304 15

Sources: FHP, Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.

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