Driver in Lesson Fatally Injures Passenger at Floyd Bennett Field
A 33-year-old woman taking a driving lesson drove a 2022 Toyota RAV4 off the roadway near 5051 Flatbush Ave. at Floyd Bennett Field on April 8, killing 76-year-old back-seat passenger Pearle Davis, records and the Daily News reported.
What We Know
On April 8, 2026, at about 6:11 p.m., a 33-year-old woman was taking a driving lesson in a 2022 Toyota RAV4 at Floyd Bennett Field, the Daily News reported. Police said she lost control, veered off the roadway and hit the side of a hangar used as a warehouse off Flatbush Avenue. City crash records place the crash near 5051 Flatbush Ave. and record one SUV with three occupants; one motorist was killed and two were injured. Pearle Davis, 76, was riding in the rear seat and died at Brookdale University Hospital. The official record lists driver inexperience as a contributing factor and records the driver as unlicensed.
Official Crash Data
Collision ID
4890580
Date
April 8, 2026
Time
6:11 p.m.
Location
5051 Flatbush Ave, Brooklyn
Borough
BROOKLYN
Fatalities
1
Motorists killed
1
Vehicles listed
SUV, Station Wagon/Sport Utility Vehicle
Contributing factors listed
Driver Inexperience
A driving lesson ended at a Floyd Bennett Field building
Police told the Daily News that a 33-year-old woman was driving a 2022 Toyota RAV4 while being given a driving lesson when she lost control at about 6:10 p.m. on April 8, 2026. The driver veered off the roadway inside Floyd Bennett Field and hit the side of a hangar used as a warehouse off Flatbush Avenue.
City crash records list the crash near 5051 Flatbush Ave. in Brooklyn at 6:11 p.m. The official record describes one SUV traveling south and going straight ahead before the crash, with three occupants inside.
Pearle Davis died after the crash
Pearle Davis, 76, was riding in the right rear seat, according to city crash records. The Daily News reported that Davis, the driver and a 45-year-old front-seat passenger were taken to Brookdale University Hospital, where Davis died.
Davis’s granddaughter, Kameeka Pope, told the Daily News that Davis was a Bushwick resident, a retired Verizon worker, a widow, and a great-grandmother who loved dancing, amusement parks and adventure.
The crash happened off Flatbush Avenue at Floyd Bennett Field
The official record places the crash at 5051 Flatbush Ave. in Brooklyn. The Daily News described the site as inside Floyd Bennett Field, off Flatbush Avenue in Marine Park, at a hangar now used as a warehouse.
Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn has seen 2,981 crashes, 1,956 injuries, 125 serious injuries and 10 deaths since 2022, according to CrashCountNYC’s Crash Finder.
Records and reporting point to driver inexperience
The city crash record lists driver inexperience as the contributing factor and records the driver as unlicensed. The Daily News, citing ABC 7 New York, reported that the motorist was being given a driving lesson when the crash happened.