A 99-year-old woman has passed away nearly two weeks after being hit by a driver without a valid license in Brooklyn, New York.
Taibel Brod, a member of the Hasidic Jewish community, was struck while crossing Montgomery Street in Crown Heights on April 8 at around 8:30 p.m., as reported by the New York Police Department. She was taken to Maimonides Medical Center and was initially thought to be in stable condition. Sadly, she died from her injuries 12 days later on April 20.
The driver, Menachem Shagalow, who is 65 years old, was driving a 2023 GMC Yukon SUV at the time of the incident. Following the accident, he faced charges for operating a vehicle without a license, failing to exercise due care, and being an unlicensed operator.
Taibel Brod had a large family, including five children and several grandchildren. She was originally from Kremenchuk, Ukraine, and came to the United States after World War II, escaping Russia on a train to Poland, according to her family. In 1946, she met her husband, Chatzkel Brod, at a displaced persons camp in Germany, where their two older daughters were born before relocating to New York in 1951.
While the NYPD reported her age as 101 at the time of her death, her family believes she was actually 99, as she used someone else’s passport when she fled Russia, leaving her true birth year unclear.
Yosef Brod, one of her sons, shared, “The hardship in her youth in Russia gave her the strength to go forward. She survived communism.” Another son, Yisroel, described the accident as a “tragedy” and highlighted Taibel’s dedication to the community, noting her habit of walking to Brookdale Hospital every morning, where she volunteered for many years.
Her family emphasized her commitment to helping others, stating she often opened her home to visitors and participated in daily prayers. Taibel was known for her strong independence, continuing to travel on public transport alone even at her advanced age.
