School bus driver fatally hit 9-year-old in Williamsburg
At Lee Avenue and Lorimer Street in Williamsburg, police and city crash data say a 49-year-old school bus driver turning left hit a 9-year-old boy crossing to school, and the driver initially continued before returning.
What We Know
On the morning of May 1, 2026, a 49-year-old driver in a school bus was turning left from Lee Avenue onto Lorimer Street in Williamsburg when he hit a 9-year-old boy who was crossing the street on his way to school, according to police accounts. The city crash record lists one pedestrian killed and cites failure to yield right-of-way. News reports say the driver initially continued, then returned after someone alerted him. Police had not filed charges in the immediate aftermath. Reports identified the child as Joel Jacobowitz or Yoel Jacobowitz, reflecting a spelling difference among sources.
Official Crash Data
Collision ID
4895909
Date
May 1, 2026
Time
8:16 a.m.
Location
Lee Ave & Lorimer St, Brooklyn
Borough
BROOKLYN
Fatalities
1
Pedestrians killed
1
Vehicles listed
Bus
Contributing factors listed
Failure to Yield Right-of-Way
A left turn as a child crossed to school
The crash happened on May 1, 2026, at Lee Avenue and Lorimer Street in Williamsburg. The city crash record places it at 8:16 a.m. and records one pedestrian killed, a 9-year-old boy.
Police accounts cited by multiple news outlets said a 49-year-old school bus driver was turning left from Lee Avenue onto Lorimer Street when he hit the child as the boy crossed the street on his way to school. The official record lists the driver’s pre-crash movement as making a left turn and cites failure to yield right-of-way.
News reports said the driver initially continued from the scene, then returned after someone waved him down or told him what had happened. Police said no charges had been filed in the immediate aftermath.
Reports differed on the child’s name spelling
The official crash record identifies the person killed as a 9-year-old male pedestrian. News reports later identified him as Joel Jacobowitz or Yoel Jacobowitz, reflecting a spelling difference among sources.
Several reports said the boy was crossing the street on his way to school. Daily News reported he was five blocks from home when the driver hit him.
A five-way Williamsburg crossing without markings
The collision occurred at Lee Avenue and Lorimer Street in Brooklyn, at a junction that news reports described as a busy five-way intersection also connecting with Wallabout Street.
Gothamist and other outlets reported that the intersection had recently been under construction or repaved and lacked crosswalk markings at the time of the crash. Council Member Lincoln Restler called for expedited markings, signal-timing review, daylighting, and a crossing guard.
CrashCountNYC location data for Lorimer Street in Brooklyn show 287 crashes, 157 injuries, 13 serious injuries and 4 deaths from 2022 through June 1, 2026.
Officials called for street changes after the death
Restler said the corner was one of the busiest intersections in Williamsburg and asked the Department of Transportation to expedite new markings. He also asked for a review of signal timing, including a possible all-pedestrian crossing phase, and for NYPD to post a crossing guard.