85-year-old woman taken to hospital after multiple collisions in Smith’s parking lot

Firefighters work to extricate an 85-year-old woman from her car after she crashed into two other vehicles in the Smith's parking lot, St. George, Utah, Nov. 18, 2014 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News

ST. GEORGE – An elderly woman was transported to the hospital after her car ran into two other vehicles in a supermarket parking lot Tuesday afternoon.

At about 2:30 p.m. in the Smith’s Food and Drug parking lot, at the corner of St. George Boulevard and Bluff Street, a white Cadillac driven by an 85-year-old woman crashed into two other vehicles.

“When she came up to make a turn, she thought she was hitting her brake pedal but hit the gas pedal,” St. George Police Officer Jeremy Needles said. “She sideswiped a red passenger car and then went head-on into a parked SUV.”

Firefighters work to extricate an 85-year-old woman from her car after she crashed  into two other vehicles in the Smith's parking lot, St. George, Utah, Nov. 18, 2014 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News
Firefighters work to extricate an 85-year-old woman from her car after she crashed into two other vehicles in the Smith’s parking lot, St. George, Utah, Nov. 18, 2014 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News

St. George resident Roman Burke said he was standing behind his car in the Smith’s parking lot when he heard the sound of squealing tires. He looked up and saw the Cadillac turn out of one of the parking aisles and hit the side of the red passenger car near the Smith’s pharmacy drive-thru. The driver’s side of the Cadillac then hit a yellow concrete barrier pole and plowed into the parked SUV.

Burke’s own car was right next to the SUV but was untouched.

“She kept her foot on the gas and pushed (the SUV) back a couple of feet,” Burke said. “That’s when I tried to run around my car and open her driver door. I couldn’t open it. … I got in through the back side door, leaned over her and put the car in park, took the keys out and set the parking brake.”

The woman was bleeding from her nose and mouth, Burke said, and he found a towel in the back of the car and tried to stop the bleeding.

The woman was extricated from the Cadillac by firefighters and was taken to Dixie Regional Medical Center.

The woman sustained a broken leg and a bloody nose, Needles said, adding that neither injury appeared to be life-threatening. Police on scene did not go into detail regarding possible contributing factors that led up to the incident.

This report is based on preliminary information provided by the authorities and may not contain the full scope of findings.

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35 Comments

  • Koolaid November 18, 2014 at 5:40 pm

    “The Little Old Lady From Santa Clara”
    It’s the little old lady from Santa Clara
    The little old lady from Santa Clara
    (Go Granny, Go Granny, Go Granny, Go)
    Has a pretty little flower bed of white Gardenias
    (Go Granny, Go Granny, Go Granny, Go)
    But parked in a rickety old garage
    Is a brand new shiny red super stocked Cadillac
    And everybody’s sayin’ that there’s nobody meaner
    Than the little old lady from Santa Clara
    She drives real fast and she drives real hard
    She’s the terror of St George Boulevard
    It’s the little old lady from Santa Clara
    If you see her on the street don’t try to choose her
    (Go Granny, Go Granny, Go Granny, Go)
    You might drive a go-er but you’ll never lose her
    (Go Granny, Go Granny, Go Granny, Go)
    She’s gonna get a ticket now sooner or later
    Cause she can’t keep her foot off the accelerator
    And everybody’s saying that there’s nobody meaner
    Than the little old lady from Santa Clara
    She Drives real fast and she drives real hard
    She’s the terror of St George Boulevard
    It’s the little old lady from Santa Clara
    You’ll see her all the time just gettin her kicks now
    (Go Granny, Go Granny, Go Granny, Go)
    with her four speed stick and a four-two-six now
    (Go Granny, Go Granny, Go Granny, Go)
    The guys come to race her from all around
    But she’ll give em a length then she’ll shut em down
    And everybody’s saying that there’s nobody meaner
    Than the little old lady from Santa Clara
    She Drives real fast and she drives real hard
    She’s the terror of St George Boulevard
    It’s the little old lady from Santa Clara
    (Go Granny, Go Granny, Go Granny, Go)
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ds0Wlj15c4U

  • clearlysuper November 18, 2014 at 6:10 pm

    Roman Burke… you are an everyday hero. Thank you for being quick on your toes, and helping someone in need. You are AWESOME! Hopefully the woman will heal quickly.

    • Roy J November 19, 2014 at 4:21 pm

      I agree with that, Clearly. I happened to be in the Smith’s parking lot trying to get that front door open along with the driver of the red car that got all fricacked up. Burke was on the other side of the car taking car of the lady, who was pretty out of it. The fire department had to pry the front door open, and when they still couldn’t get her out, they busted the driver’s side rear passenger door off and ripped the partition panel out to get to her.

  • M and M cookies November 18, 2014 at 6:30 pm

    You hear this story over and over , at what age should people be tested for drivers license renewal. Maybe someone has to be killed.. It’s easy to say I stepped on the gas instead of th brake, and not be held responsible..

    • Herd November 18, 2014 at 8:13 pm

      When are the police going to start profile stops on old people? Hey, you look to old to drive! I’m going to pull you over for, uh, no insurance when I ran your license, or for not signaling for two seconds when you changed lanes or for your tail light being out. While we have the old people pulled over, we will pretend to smell something illegal and search your vehicle. We will find a reason to cite old people tickets for something or another to get them off the street and for our promotions.

  • Kira walker November 18, 2014 at 7:32 pm

    I witnessed this, I am glad she is okay. As horrible as this situation was it was nice to see people jumping in to help, making sure she was okay.

  • groanattack November 18, 2014 at 7:59 pm

    I never go to an amusement park for rear end tightening thrills anymore, now I just take a drive around St. George for that.

  • PROTECT THE SHEEP November 18, 2014 at 8:03 pm

    Good thing granny didn’t have that boat pointed in a direction that would have killed someone.

  • Wowza November 18, 2014 at 8:21 pm

    Did the cops arrest anyone for dancing around the parking lot trying to avoid granny?

    • Zonkerb November 19, 2014 at 12:59 am

      Two people were given citations for attempted dancing and conspiracy to imitate a dance step

      • Rachel November 19, 2014 at 8:55 am

        LOL! Now THAT was the joke that SNL should have tried… 🙂

      • My Evil Twin November 19, 2014 at 11:43 am

        Have you ever, in your short life, had a thought that was worth speaking of? In fact, have you ever had a thought at all, that wasn’t pirated so you could parrot it?

        • Zonkerb November 19, 2014 at 12:42 pm

          Hey I have a thought.. only a moron like you gets lost in a roundabout. LOL

  • DeKe November 18, 2014 at 10:51 pm

    easy solution = after a certain age, people should need to pass an actual driver’s test to renew their license ANNUALLY. an eye test or open book exam isn’t good enough for the elderly. they need to get in their car with a DMV tester and drive a couple miles just like when they originally got their Learner’s Permits as teens. I hope when I reach that age, I would look forward to proving I’m still competent to drive … if I can’t pass, it’s better to find out before some horrible accident.

    • Rachel November 19, 2014 at 8:56 am

      Of course, this only works if they drive with a license. Police wouldn’t be able to pull them over if they were obeying traffic laws just because they look “too old to drive.” That’s profiling, after all.

  • Schwa November 18, 2014 at 11:51 pm

    Don’t forget the “first” first responders, the dispatchers that take the 911 calls and get help where its needed quickly!

  • SSfreeze November 19, 2014 at 5:03 am

    As unpopular as it may be, it is time to force older people to pass driving skills tests each year. The public’s safety depends on it.

    • Koolaid November 19, 2014 at 6:28 pm

      That ain’t gonna happen. These are the primary voters in elections!

  • dancing infidel November 19, 2014 at 9:03 am

    Another issue involving the elderly drivers of this area. Has anyone been behind an elderly driver while getting onto the freeway? Now THAT is another accident waiting to happen. Try attempting to merge onto the freeway at 35 mph, where the traffic on the freeway is going between 65-70 mph. I agree with other comments calling for a mandatory requirement for seniors to pass a driving skill test in order to renew their driving license. The safety of the public IS dependent on it. DO NOT wait till a senior kills someone.

  • Herd November 19, 2014 at 9:49 am

    Seniors should be required to pass a senility test. Some of them drive like crazy old geezers.

    • My Evil Twin November 19, 2014 at 11:44 am

      Perhaps that is because we ARE CRAZY OLD GEEZERS! BWAAAHAAAHAAA
      If you don’t like the way we drive, STAY OFF THE SIDEWALKS! 🙂

      • Zonkerb November 19, 2014 at 12:48 pm

        really.? Stay off the sidewalk is the best you can do.? have you ever thought of using your own line. and not stealing somebody else’s material. have you ever even had a thought. Duhhhh

      • Wowza November 19, 2014 at 1:09 pm

        Drive the speed limit, not your age.

  • Doofus November 19, 2014 at 11:11 am

    I also was there when this occurred. The number of people willing to help was inspiring. Roman Burke is indeed a hero. Instead of standing around contemplating his near death experience, he jumped into the wrecked car to help the injured woman. Thanks, Roman. I hope you are around when I need help. Best wishes for Granny’s speedy recovery.

  • JOSH DALTON (INCOGNEGRO) November 19, 2014 at 11:47 am

    The amazing thing to me is that this all happened in a parking lot. The car looks like it hit a deer.

  • robert November 19, 2014 at 12:04 pm

    I used to think all that talk about seniors being terrible drivers was overblown, then I moved to st george. They should implement a shuttle or something to drive them around they have no place behind the wheel of a vehicle.

    • My Evil Twin November 19, 2014 at 3:07 pm

      Sadly Robert, it is a fact of life. There comes a time when folks start losing the necessary skills to drive. Those skills include vision and hearing, reaction time, good judgement and a whole lot more.
      Being a senior myself, I would fully support a law making yearly mandatory road tests and license renewal for folks over 65. Or for anyone that appears to be having a problem with functioning.
      Of course I don’t want to give up my car keys. But I would surely rather do that, than kill some innocent person because of a lack of being able to drive safely.
      Seniors usually put on a whole lot less miles than younger folks do. This is another thing that can lead to a loss of ability to make decisions and control your vehicle. It also means there is less chance of a problem happening, but it doesn’t lessen the severity of a problem when one occurs.

      OK, Zonkster, come on it.

      • Turn Off November 19, 2014 at 4:35 pm

        Why 65? I bet you voted for old Orrin Hatch and look how senile he is with congressional keys.

      • Zonkerb November 19, 2014 at 10:54 pm

        Yeah it’s amazing idiots like you are allowed to drive go to the police department they will show you how to drive through a roundabout without getting lost

  • Zonkerb November 19, 2014 at 12:51 pm

    Yeah that is about what happens when idiots like twin get behind the wheel

    • My Evil Twin November 19, 2014 at 8:30 pm

      Your mom doing OK now?

  • Jamie November 19, 2014 at 10:04 pm

    My husband’s car was the red car that was hit and he was in it when it happened. He also helped hold the woman’s car from it moving and hitting any other cars.

  • Liberal November 20, 2014 at 1:15 pm

    Being an elderly senior in Utah, did she blame Obama for her accident?

  • Matt Gurwell November 21, 2014 at 8:25 pm

    Don’t give tragedy the opportunity to strike your family; there is help available.

    Keeping Us Safe is a national organization that provides practical, real-life solutions to older drivers and their families. Our programs are designed to help older drivers with diminished driving skills make a smooth transition from the driver’s seat to the passenger seat without deterioration to their dignity, personal pride or independence.

    Our programs provide families with the missing link between their desire to bring this issue to a peaceful resolution, and their ability to actually do so.

    “Beyond Driving with Dignity; The workbook for older drivers and their families” serves as the foundation for the “Beyond Driving with Dignity” program. It is a ‘working’ workbook, designed to remove the family’s opinion, emotion and speculation from the challenging process of deciding whether or not a loved-one should continue or if, in the interest of safety, they need to retire from driving.

    We also offer our Certified “Beyond Driving with Dignity” Professionals who have been specifically trained and certified in Keeping Us Safe’s “Enhanced Self-Assessment Program” for older drivers. With the 3-hour (in-person) self-assessment program, families benefit from a third-party, impartial intervention in resolving this very delicate and sensitive issue with their loved-one.

    Certified “Beyond Driving with Dignity” Professionals can be found throughout the U. S. and Canada.

    Keeping Us Safe’s “self-assessment program” for older drivers has become a respected resource for physicians, hospital systems, and court systems looking for help for older drivers and their concerned families.

    Our programs are designed to save lives while helping to ease the burden of the family as they find themselves faced with this very challenging issue.

    For more information or to learn more about becoming one of the Nation’s Certified “Beyond Driving with Dignity” Professionals, visit Keeping Us Safe at http://www.keepingussafe.org or call us at 877-907-8841.

  • NotSoFast December 9, 2015 at 11:27 pm

    I’m a older, intelligent guy. But after reading some of the comments of this unfortunate occurrence, I suggest the editor make weekly ‘drugs free’ tests mandatory before accepting certain logged in nuts. I would also recommend that all seniors do their shopping over at Harmons where they belong. (It’s closer to the hospital. Right?)

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