HUNTS POINT — A Bronx grandmother died after a pickup truck slammed into her at a Hunts Point intersection steps from her home on Friday morning, police said.
Maria Montalvo, 66, who walked with a cane, was in the crosswalk when a Nissan pickup turned left from Hunts Point Avenue onto Lafayette Avenue, hitting her about 10:40 a.m., the NYPD said.
"It happened very fast — the driver stopped immediately," said Scott O'Neill, 51, who saw the accident. "He got down on his knees and went to her service. He gave her napkins to stop the bleeding."
Montalvo, who was about half a block from her home, lay on the sidewalk, bleeding from her head. She moved her mouth as if trying to speak but no words came out, O'Neill said.
Montalvo was rushed to Lincoln Hospital, where she was pronounced dead, police said.
The 55-year-old driver remained on the scene and was not immediately arrested, the NYPD said.
Moments after the crash, Montalvo's husband and adult daughter rushed to her side from their nearby apartment building. O'Neill, who has known the family for 35 years, declined to give their names.
"He went to his wife, looked down and lost it," he said.
Montalvo's daughter was equally emotional, screaming, "It's my mother, what happened, who hit her?" according to O'Neill.
The Montalvo family has lived in the neighborhood for about 35 years.
Although she was by herself during the accident, neighbors often saw her walking with her husband or daughter. The church-going grandmother had problems with her leg and walked slowly with the help of a cane.
Reserved and polite, she was particularly fond of Betty Boop dolls.
"She always used to give my wife a Betty Boop doll for Christmas," O'Neill said.
