NIAGARA FALLS -- A combination of speed, mechanical issues and wet street conditions are being blamed in a crash that took the life of a Niagara Falls man over the weekend.
City police Traffic Capt. Salvatore Pino said today that the crash remains under investigation, but that all three are factors likely contributed in the death of Matthew S. Sklarski, 24, of 91st Street, on Friday afternoon.
Sklarski suffered severe head injuries after he crashed into a telephone pole at Tuscarora Road and Niagara Falls Boulevard about 4:30 p.m. Doctors at Erie County Medical Center performed surgery after the crash, but Sklarski died from his injuries Saturday morning.
Sklarski's GMC pickup hydroplaned as he tried to turn right from Niagara Falls Boulevard onto Tuscarora Road, Pino said. The truck then spun out and hit a utility pole across the street, almost bending the pickup in half around the pole.
The crash occurred during a rain storm and the tires on the pickup were "not that good," Pino said.
"Speed was definitely a factor in this, as well as what could be the condition of his tires, as well as how wet the road was," Pino said. "He probably could have gone that fast on a dry road with those tires or on a wet road with good tires."
"We have not had a chance to calculate [the speed]," Pino added, "but you can tell from years of experience that he was moving at a pretty good speed."
The police department traffic division will look at those factors, as well as other equipment failure or mechanical issues that also might have played a part in the crash.
Sklarski is the nephew of former Niagara County Legislator Danny W. Sklarski, a Town of Niagara Democrat who resigned in April to fill a vacant seat on the Niagara Town Board.
Source:
