A tragic incident occurred early Saturday morning, November 24, 2024, on the Long Island Expressway in Queens, New York, resulting in the death of 32-year-old Priyanka Sewhani from Oyster Bay, Long Island.
According to the New York Police Department (NYPD), Sewhani was a backseat passenger in a 2019 Volkswagen Passat, operated as an Uber, traveling eastbound near the Kissena Boulevard exit near Flushing around 1:40 a.m. For reasons still under investigation, she exited the moving vehicle and was subsequently “unknowingly” struck by another car in the left lane. The driver of the second vehicle did not remain at the scene.
Emergency Medical Services pronounced Sewhani dead at the scene. The 54-year-old Uber driver remained on-site and is cooperating with authorities. The NYPD Highway District’s Collision Investigation Squad is leading the ongoing investigation to determine the circumstances that led to Sewhani’s exit from the vehicle.
Following the incident, an Uber spokesperson conveyed deep sadness over the tragedy and affirmed the company’s full cooperation with authorities in the ongoing investigation.
The situation prompted the temporary closure of all four eastbound lanes of the Long Island Expressway between Main Street and Kissena Boulevard as investigators processed the scene. Authorities are urging anyone with information about the hit-and-run driver or the circumstances surrounding the incident to contact the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers hotline.
This Uber incident is not isolated; other fatal occurrences involving Uber vehicles have raised concerns about passenger safety. In March 2018, Elaine Herzberg was struck and killed by an autonomous Uber vehicle in Tempe, Arizona, marking the first recorded pedestrian fatality involving a self-driving car. The vehicle’s backup driver, Rafaela Vasquez, was later found to be distracted at the time of the collision and pleaded guilty to endangerment, receiving a sentence of three years’ probation.
More recently, in August 2023, a devastating crash in Los Angeles resulted in the deaths of three women—Juvelyn Arroyo, 23, Veronica Amezola, 23, and Kimberly Izquierdo, 27—when a speeding driver collided with the Uber they were passengers in. Two other individuals sustained critical injuries in the accident.
In light of these events, it is crucial to revisit the safety features and protocols that rideshare companies like Uber have implemented to protect passengers and drivers. Uber’s Community Guidelines emphasize the importance of mutual respect and law adherence to ensure a safe environment for all users.
Additionally, Uber provides a Safety Center within its app, offering features such as trip sharing with trusted contacts, emergency assistance, and the ability to report safety issues.