A man who wandered away from his Alzheimer's care facility was struck and killed Wednesday night in Castro Valley, the California Highway Patrol reported. Carl McElroy, 89, wandered away from the Oak Creek Alzheimer's & Dementia Care facility and was walking down the middle of East Castro Valley Boulevard near Paloverde Road when he was struck by a BMW around 8:15 p.m.
McElroy died at the scene of the accident. According to reports in the Mercury News, the driver of the BMW stopped and he and a passenger are cooperating with authorities. The driver was not believed to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
Our deepest sympathy goes out to the family of Carl McElroy. What a heartbreaking story. Please keep his loved ones in your prayers.
Investigators are looking into not just how the accident occurred, but how Mr. McElroy managed to get away from his care facility. The newspaper reports of this incident do not indicate how long McElroy was missing, or if staff at the nursing home even noticed he was missing before he was killed. Regardless, it seems that negligence on the part of the care facility played a role in this man's death.
Nursing home negligence is an epidemic, and tragic events resulting in death and serious injury to elderly people are on the rise. When elderly men and woman are neglected and left alone instead of being properly supervised and treated with care and respect, nursing homes should be held accountable. Just two days ago, we wrote on this same blog of an incident only about 30 miles away from Castro Valley - a 63-year-old woman who wandered away from her skilled nursing facility in Concord was found dead three days after she went missing. The family of Carl McElroy would be well-advised to speak to a California nursing home abuse lawyer who will help protect their rights and ensure justice is served for the loss of their family member.
The nursing home neglect lawyers at Estey & Bomberger, LLP have more than 70 years of collective experience representing victims of nursing home abuse and nursing home neglect. If you believe someone you love is a victim of neglect or abuse, contact Estey & Bomberger at (800)724-3817 for a free consultation.
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