Driver in Lesson Hits Floyd Bennett Field Building, Killing Passenger
A 33-year-old woman taking a driving lesson hit a Floyd Bennett Field building, killing rear-seat passenger Pearle Davis and injuring two people.
What We Know
At Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn, police said a 33-year-old driver lost control while taking a driving lesson and hit the side of a hangar used as a warehouse off Flatbush Avenue. City records place the crash near 5051 Flatbush Ave. at 6:11 p.m. on April 8, 2026, and list one person killed and two motorists injured. Pearle Davis, 76, was riding in the right rear seat of a 2022 Toyota SUV and died at Brookdale University Hospital. The Daily News reported that Davis had been out celebrating a friend’s birthday; her granddaughter remembered her as “the life of the party.” Police recorded driver inexperience as a contributing factor, and the official record says the driver was unlicensed.
Police said the driver lost control during a lesson
The Daily News reported that police said a 33-year-old woman was driving a 2022 Toyota RAV4 at Floyd Bennett Field when she lost control at about 6:10 p.m. on April 8, 2026. The report said the driver veered off the roadway and hit the side of a hangar now used as a warehouse off Flatbush Avenue.
City records list the crash near 5051 Flatbush Ave. at 6:11 p.m. and record one person killed and two motorists injured. The official record describes the SUV traveling south and going straight ahead before impact.
The crash happened inside Floyd Bennett Field off Flatbush Avenue
The collision was recorded at 5051 Flatbush Ave. in Brooklyn, within Floyd Bennett Field. The Daily News described the site as a hangar used as a warehouse in Marine Park, part of the former municipal airport that now sits within Gateway National Recreation Area.
Across Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn, CrashCountNYC recorded 2,981 crashes, 1,956 injuries, 125 serious injuries and 10 deaths from 2022 through June 1, 2026.
Pearle Davis was riding in the back seat
The official record identifies the person killed as a 76-year-old female passenger seated in the right rear. The Daily News identified her as Pearle Davis and reported that she was taken to Brookdale University Hospital, where she died.
Davis’s granddaughter, Kameeka Pope, told the Daily News that Davis was a retired widow from Bushwick who had worked for Verizon for about 50 years and loved dancing, amusement parks and adventure. “My grandma should be remembered as always the life of the party,” Pope said.
The Daily News reported that the driver and Davis’s 45-year-old daughter, who was in the front passenger seat, were also taken to Brookdale. Police said Davis’s daughter was in stable condition, and Pope said the driver remained unconscious.
Police recorded driver inexperience
The official record lists driver inexperience as the contributing factor and says the driver was unlicensed. The Daily News reported, citing ABC 7 New York, that the motorist was being given a driving lesson when the crash occurred.