'All of it is horrible': Death of woman ejected from Uber on Rt. 33 considered 'accidental'
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — The death of a 21-year-old woman who was ejected from a vehicle on Route 33 earlier this month is believed to have been "accidental," prompting no criminal charges, Cheektowaga police announced Thursday.
Police said the woman, a Buffalo resident, was in an Uber traveling home from work around 6:30 p.m. on Feb. 8 on the westbound Kensington Expressway when she was "ejected" from the car and struck by another vehicle.
The woman is believed to have climbed out of the rear window of the vehicle while it was in motion to the point that her upper torso was outside the car. It is unclear what caused her to fall out of the vehicle, but she was subsequently killed after the fall, according to police.
"The hardest and most frustrating part about this type of investigation is we may never have the clearest answer of what actually occurred to actually cause her to fall from the vehicle. That's frustrating for a lot of reasons, but we just can't really imagine what this must be like for the family. It's a devastating loss for them and just a tragic thing that's occurred here," Capt. Jeffrey Schmidt, public information officer for Cheektowaga Police, said.
She was struck by a vehicle behind the Uber after she fell out of the car and was pronounced dead at the scene.
At the time of the incident, the driver of the Uber and the woman were the only occupants of the vehicle.
Police said both the driver of the Uber and the driver of the vehicle that struck the woman "immediately came forward" when the incident occurred and have cooperated with the investigation. Authorities have also spoken to several witnesses.
"All of it is horrible. It's horrible for the family who lost a loved one. It's horrible for the other drivers on the roadway who had to experience this incident as well. There's no silver lining that I see that there's a good point in this story," Capt. Schmidt added.
The name of the woman has not been released by police.
The westbound Kensington Expressway between Union and Cayuga Roads was closed for roughly five hours after the incident occurred.
The department says it has investigated several crashes and other serious incidents involving vehicles this year.
"I have seen what I believe is an increase in these types of accidents, the seriousness of accidents, it's been a really rough start to the year," Capt. Schmidt said. "Across the board with serious injuries and accidents resulting in death involving motor vehicles, we've had a very high start to the year."
Anyone with additional information can contact the Accident Investigation and Traffic Safety Unit at 716-686-3527.