A toddler was injured after being struck by a vehicle this evening. The accident occurred about 6:45 PM on 9th Street. Hatzolah BLS and ALS members as well as the police responded to the scene.
The three year old child was transported by Hatzolah Paramedics to Jersey Shore Medical Center with a back injury.
Any name for tehillim
I just got back from Lakewood. I witnessed something that was unbelievable yet true. I was in the car with my husband who was driving down 4th street between Clifton and Lexington, I believe. I saw a young girl approximately two and a half to three years old walking down the sidewalk in the opposite direction. There was no one next to her. We were stopped at a red light and my husband and I wondered where her mother was. Towards the end of the block was a mother pushing a stroller with some kids next to her, looking straight ahead. Perhaps that was her mother? A second later another woman with kids came from around the corner and started walking in the same direction as the toddler. So we thought maybe THAT was the mother. But this mother and her kids blithely walked past the toddler not even noticing (or caring) that here was a small child walking by herself! *By the way the child was wearing a bright red or pink outfit..clearly visible. At that point I saw the toddler getting to the end of the sidewalk and felt she was about to cross into the street. My husband pulled over as I bolted out of the car with the intention of running down the block to try to catch this toddler before she went into the street. As I started down the sidewalk I saw the toddler go off the sidewalk in front of a car parked by the corner of the street. I could not believe what I was witnessing. As she went in front of the car near the driver’s seat all of a sudden the mother appeared from the back of the car and scooped her up before she could go further. (It turns out that her mother was in fact the first lady I saw walking down the street looking ahead, while her toddler was prancing down the sidewalk about a half a block away!)
I should have continued on and confronted the mother, but I did not. Aside from witnessing this incident my husband and I saw other small children (not as young as this toddler) playing in front of houses or walking the streets unaccompanied by an older person…this was in the area of Negba and Fifth, which to me did not seem to be a particularly completely Jewish neighborhood. (Truthfully EVERY time we go to lakewood to visit our children we see this over and over again.)
Now I come home and I read this posting about a small child being hit by a vehicle. It is a neis that this does not happen more often.
I would like to speak to someone in Lakewood who can call attention to this matter. If mothers don’t have commonsense about this then they need to hear it from someone in authortiy. Should I call Rabbi Matisyahu Solomon? If so can someone tell me the phone number? Is there someone else I should call instead?
to goldy, unfortunately, this goes on daily in Lakewood, I drive thru and see 2, and 3 year olds walking alone on the street, where are the parents, dyfs should be called on all of them who do this!!!
THAT STORY HAPPENS IN BROOKYN EVERYDAY I WORK THERE I C IT EVERY DAY SO YHANX BUT LAKEWOOD IS A VERY \SAFE PLACE
I agree 100% with Goldy. I live in Brookhill and see all the time real young children alone. One hot Shabbos afternoon, I was taking a walk and noticed a 2 1/2-3 yr old crying all byherself without a person in sight! I had no clue who she was or where she lived. It took a couple of min until I figured it out and walked her home a 5 min walk, she was on the other side of Brookhill and her cousin was supposed to have walked her to another cousin for the afternoon. B’H all ends well! BUT, it could have ended differently. A cleaning lady, mailman… C’V….. I don’t even want to say… This MUST be addressed! It is an unfortunate problem….
Dear Goldy, i couldn’t agree more, it’s really a neis what is happening here . not only is the problem that parents aren’t watching their kids, but the ppl. driving here like chayas. ignoring STOP signs, turning on red while therer’s a sign that says no turn on red……. i don’t think it will ever stop, untill ppl get into a major accident. ppl here in lakewood and brkln have no patience.
CALL 911 – report these dangerous parents to the POLICE immediately, there is no other number to call than 911 – 9-1-1
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NINE ONE ONE
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911
911
911
POLICE
911
911
unfortunately it would keep happening even if s/o addressed it
Refuah shelaima to this toddler. Please post a name so we can daven for him or her.
goldy
next time get out of your car and yell at the mother or just report her. This is a case of LO NAAMOD AL DAM REACHO
I’s not only in Lakewood that people don’t watch their kids, I see it in Monsey too.
Nothing happened so how about you mind your business!!
Why is it that most of the comments that have posted about this story say it happens all the time in Brooklyn and Monsey and it seems like it’s not a big deal …. I must ask …. does anyone even consider what COULD HAPPEN AND WHAT HAS HAPPENED IN THE PAST ?
To anonymous #11….and should i also mind my own business if something does happen to a child because of negligence, chas v’shalom? should i not say tehillim?should i not give tzedaka?
Sometimes it is good to mind your own business and sometime it is not good. I feel it is important for someone in Lakewood and in all other communities with this problem to openly address parents about the dangers inherent in leaving children unattended whether in their own front yards or on the sidewalks.
As I watched the second mother walk past the unattended toddler I thought of Leiby Kletzky, z”l, ….how many passersby walked right past him “minding their own business “and not seeing a child who maybe needed some help?
Is there anyone reading this who lives in Lakewood who can approach someone in authority to address this issue?
All these points are true . However, have you ever hear of an ACCIDENT? Why the assumption that no one was watching this child?!
oops..meant ANONYMOUS # 12
Unfortunately this happens all over. It happens in Monsey, in Brooklyn, in Harlem, and in Moscow. It happens in Westgate, Williamsburg, Gaza, and Mexico City. It happens in Forest Park, Boro Park, Central Park, and Beijing Municipal Park.
They should all be reported to DYFS.
to goldy
welcome to the generation of instant -gradification & self centeredness. where everything is me, me & only me, if its not good for me then i can’t help or watch even my own wife or children.
i tell you its really sad that the situation has to get so bad. & the only way for people to learn from others mistakes & be more alert in life etc…. is for us to FACE REALITY & do something about it. before it happens again C’V
i.e. how many thousands of accidents have occurred because of texting & driving? or not wearing a reflector at night? why have we not learnt from these tragedies to stop texting? the situation has gotten so bad to the point that if C”V someone heard that his neighbor/friend got into a MVA caused by texting we still wont learn from it. so what are we all doing? a person is C”V putting a klala on himself by telling hashem ha ha you can’t get me to stop texting unless you make something happen to me C”V
how sad but true it is, why can’t we face reality & do something about it when any issue arises, instead of learning from it after its too late & something happpened already C”V?
It does not matter where t is happening, it does matter that it is happening. Children are a gift given to us to nurture, to love and to be taken care off. NO child at that age should be walking, playing outside or being left in a car by themselves.
watched a mom talking to her friend who was sitting in her mini-van today after she pulled into the driveway, with reversing the only way to get back out. she pulled in so she wouldnt be in the road while the shmoozed, car was still running and the 2 year old was not being watched at all…. I know that because he was standing directly behind the min-van while the adults were other wise occupied socializing.
@ Goldy I to am horrified by the lack of supervision of children in town, and my wife always says that Hashem is watching over these kids.
Does anyone know this child’s name for Tehillim?
You are 100 percent right Goldy. Rabbi Yoffee who is a smart Rov that says things as they are spoke in his shul this shabbos. It was shabbos hatzolah, he said that besides for supporting hatzalah financially we must change the way we drive so that they are not needed as much!!! There were 300 motor vehicles accidents this past year in which hatzzalah was needed rchl”tz!!!
Goldy is 100% correct. You can not imagine how many times I have pulled children away from approaching cars, returned roaming kids to parents, and even pressured parents into buckling in their kinderlach. Just today I explained to a mother that she must not leave her kids in the car for even a moment with the engine running. Parents, please, Do not take your precious treasures for granted, Think of all the couples who daven constantly for children but have not been blessed. Do you think they would take chances with their children if they were fortunate enough to have them now? Do not be kafui tov! Do not take your children or Hashem’s protection for granted. Err on the side of caution and do everything you can to protect your children. You ae BH so careful to protect their neshamos; protect their lives, too!
Goldy …Dont speak to R Matisyahu, he is in poor health and it will only cause him more stress.. CALL DYFS……
I think the bottom line is, unfortunately here in lakewood (or many other frum communities) nobody appreciates the brocho of being gebentched with children. Healthy children at that. Everyone just takes it for granted that they will have one child after the other without any thoughts what so ever. I am willing to guarantee that any couple waiting to be bentched with a healthy baby would cry (or is already crying) wishing they could be a mother/father of this/ any child!! Enough of all these excuses!! Leaving kids in the car… Letting them roam on their own…. having 4 yr. olds watch 2 yr. olds. People Hashem bentched with these children… Appreciate them as a brocho not a tircha… And treat them with the love and care they deserve. If you think you are doing a great job leaving your children to their own devices… Think about all those people who would love to have even just one of those (yes I’m sorry to say,)those poor neglected children
My mother’s neighbor once looked out of her window to see a baby probably not even one yet crawling across street. She quickly ran outside, picked the child up, and brought him to his mother who hadn’t even noticed that her baby was missing. This could have had a terrible ending had she not looked out her window. Please lets all watch our children as we would our gold, our very expensive shoes, and purses. After all, they are our children, special gifts from G-D and deserve the best care. I will also say a prayer for this young child…
I truly think that some parents just don’t know how dangerous it is to do the things they are doing. That is why I feel it is important for someone in authority to somehow address the population about this situation. (Maybe the pediatricians can discuss this with the parents during a visit?? Maybe at PTA meetings??) Just as the population gets addressed about spiritual dangers, the same should take place about physical dangers. I don’t mean to specifically pick on Lakewood, but that is where I go and see this occurring. Every neighborhood who has this problem should also have it addressed. Baruch Hashem where I live I have never seen this problem.
to # 12 mind your business
i don’t know about you but if i saw a child alone i would not mind my business. i would really be conserded about were the childs parents are. we live in a unsafe world and many crazy things are happening
Its crazy— we just moved out of lakewood. Seeing dozens of abandoned toddlers wandering the streets day and night, dazed and lost was just too much to bare. That, and the fact that no school would accept our child. The school system must be so proud that they forced a family out of town because they did not fit their cookier cutter mold exactly as they require.
besides, we are much happier now where we are, where EVERY Jew is welcomed and accepted and EVERY toddler and child is supervised in the street and buckled into an age appropriate car seat.
to number 30 i admire you
Good for you!! I envy you. I hope everything works out for you. And on behalf of the schools, I am so sorry you had to experience such pain.
I was in Williamsburg over 30 years ago kids where running unsupervised .one child ran in the street in front of a car. A lady grab the child and screamed who is the parents of this child. Its nothing new.
if dyfs was called once you will see a big difference they make enough problems to scare people
all it takes is for someone to call dyfs once that will bring an awareness for a long time
whats the DYFS?
DYFS sends social workers to your home who themselves are unfit to raise a Jewish child and finds reasons to take them away.
Why are they “unfit” to raise a Jewish child? Only a Jewish child or any child in general??? What is it exactly you are implying?
#30- what town do you live in? are there any homes for sale?