A solar panel tore loose in the high winds of Sunday’s nor’easter, seconds before it struck and killed a 76-year-old woman near the Ocean Parkway subway entrance in Brighton Beach.
“It was a shock. The security guard in my building told me the solar panel, this one right here on the edge, fell down on the lady’s head and killed her. And he was all shook up,” neighbor Lynn Arola said.
What You Need To Know
A solar panel tore loose in the high winds of Sunday’s nor’easter striking and killing a 76-year-old woman in Brighton Beach, according to officials
Inspectors have issued a partial vacate order for the parking lot below and temporarily closed a nearby subway entrance as a precaution
NY1 reached out to the property owners for comment, but they were closed for the day
The Department of Buildings says the investigation is ongoing
Police say it happened just after 10:30 a.m. on Sunday.
Lyudmila Braun was found unconscious, according to officials. She was taken to the hospital, where she later died.
The Department of Buildings says the panel broke free from its steel frame, carried roughly 20 feet by the wind, before striking Braun.
Inspectors have issued a partial vacate order for the parking lot below and temporarily closed a nearby subway entrance as a precaution.
“They’ve got to do an investigation,” neighbor Ala Libman said.
Libman says her son and Braun’s son are close friends.
“Of course he’s upset. His mom went to do shopping and got killed,” Libman said.
This was the city’s only reported death linked to the storm that brought high surf, toppled trees and scattered debris across the five boroughs.
Neighbors in the area say they’re waiting for answers on how something like this could happen.
“I don’t have words right now,” Libman said.
NY1 reached out to the property owners for comment, but they were closed for the day.
The DOB says the investigation is ongoing.