A grandmother impaled on a fence in a horror freak accident "four steps away from her home" has died from her injuries.
Paulina Nrecaj, 59, died in the Bronx area of New York after she was hit by a Lexus SUV that pushed her into a spiked metal fence on Friday, September 9.
Doctors attempted to save her life as the mum-of-three underwent surgery at Jacobi Hospital, but they were unsuccessful.
Her husband heard the incident while upstairs in their apartment and rushed to help, but knew that his wife would not survive.
Frane Nrecaj, 71, said to the New York Post: "She was passed out. She lost a lot of blood coming from her mouth, a lot of blood coming from her nose."
Paulina was on her way to get pizza when she died and now leaves three children and one grandchild behind.
"To me she was a great person. She raised my kids. She was perfect. The kids were happy in their life. She was happy."
A 35-year-old nurse attended the incident due to being nearby and knew immediately Paulina was suffering from internal bleeding.
Jada Bellamy said: "She had a big, big gash on her left elbow and blood was coming from [her stomach]. I knew she had internal bleeding instantly so I was like 'Don’t move her.'"
A passer-by and neighbour across the street also tried to help and aided the attempt, but Uber driver Sall Arobye, 32 said he was left with a broken heart.
Revealing Paulina asked her if she thought she would make it, Sall said she told him "Yeah, you can make it... stay strong".
Sall added: "It’s horrible. It’s horrible. I feel like I lied to her. She didn’t make it. It broke my heart."
Police said the crash appeared to be accidental, while Paulina's daughter Diana, 32, said she blamed a newly installed bike lane protected by a row of parked cars was confusing drivers. The SUV crashed when swerving to avoid hitting a van.
She said: "It throws people off. There’s never been an accident here. He probably jumped the curb.
"She didn’t deserve this. She was four steps away from her home."
Mourning family and friends paid tribute to Paulina by leaving flowers at a makeshift memorial on the day after she died. The broken fence still lies limply on the ground.
The driver of the Lexus was taken to the hospital in a stable condition.
Website How’s My Driving NY said the vehicle involved has 168 violations, 20 of which are for speeding in school zones.
