EAST PALATKA, Fla — There was a bad traffic crash Friday in Putnam County. It has people living nearby saying it’s a bad intersection.
On top of that, they found out one of their neighbors was in the crash and flown to the hospital.
"I heard this one. And I thought it was a delivery on my door," Luke Taft said the sound of the crash was loud. He lives maybe a block away from the crash between a white car and a black car on Highway 17 in East Palatka Friday afternoon.
Surveillance video from a nearby business caught the crash on tape.
It was at the intersection of Rio Vista Road, a small residential street.
The same street is where the driver of the white car lives.
That driver's neighbors, such as Taft, say there are many crashes at that crossroads. Some have involved pedestrians.
Taft has even created an image to depict the dangers of that spot.
He said, "Between the gas station and the saloon, there are seven points of entry onto the highway. It’s a lot to look at all at once when you are trying to get from place to place within the intersection."
While the number of recent crashes at Highway 17 and Rio Vita Road was not readily available, troopers and officers say there have seen several incidents here.
A possible solution?
Taft admits he is not a traffic expert by any means, but a caution light would "definitely help, if not a full-on traffic light."
As for the people in this crash, the woman driver of the black car was able to walk out of the car with assistance. The man driving the white car (who is in his 90s) was flown to a hospital in Gainesville.
For Taft, knowing that the elderly driver is his neighbor, hits home.
"It makes me think, it could be me, maybe the next time," Taft nodded.