Police are still investigating an accident on Route 79 in Durham Wednesday that killed 61-year-old Durham resident Wanda Jacques-Gill.
According to NBC30, Jacques-Gill was crossing the street to pick her mail when she was hit by a Jeep being driven by 39-year-old William Zanks, who lived on the same stretch of Route 79 as Jacques-Gill.
Jacques-Gill was a member of the Durham Animal Rescue Team, and worked for 21 years at the Connecticut State Medical Society, in addition to being the managing editor of Connecticut Medicine, the Hartford Courant reported.
She was also a member of the town's Community Emergency Response Team, having been sworn in earlier this year.
See NBCConnecticut’s video interview with Jacques-Gill’s husband, Ronald Gill Jr.
There are places where the "shoulder" is almost non-existent. For me it was a choice to ride there, but I felt for the people who live along that road. Having a place to ride, walk, and connect with neighbors can really make or break a neighborhood. Saying hello while collecting your mail can seem like a little thing, but it really can make a difference particularly if there is no other "third space" (playground, beach, other hangout place) in the neighborhood where people can easily connect. I know people have lawns (some of them big) in those neighborhoods, but it'd be great if 79 was a little more bike and pedestrian friendly. I'm pretty sure the Madison PD has this on the list of roads where they would like to educate drivers and then enforce the 3-foot rule, but I think it requires working with the state. The accident in Durham was a double tragedy, mostly for the woman and her family, but also for the man who lives nearby and was driving the jeep. What a nightmare.
I'm speculating, so it could be the other way around. But there is no reason here to just blindly assume the driver is at fault until the investigation states such. If I were the driver and I wasn't at fault, I would be feeling terrible enough as it is without people who don't know anything about it blaming me for it too.