Senior dies in Mound House after pulling into heavy traffic

MOUND HOUSE - An elderly woman was killed Thursday when she pulled out in front of eastbound rush-hour traffic at Highway 50 East and Highlands Drive, officials said.

"Several witnesses said the lady pulled out from the stop sign," Nevada Highway Patrol Trooper Todd Hartline said. "For some unknown reason, she failed to yield."

The accident, which backed up eastbound traffic for a little more than three hours, happened at about 5:43 p.m.

The woman, whose name is being withheld pending notification of next of kin, lived in the mobile home subdivision on the south side of Highway 50 East just across the city line into Lyon County.

"This (intersection) is terrible," said resident Joe Ibarra.

Following an outcry from Mound House residents after a fatal accident in 1999 near the same intersection, the Nevada Department of Transportation lowered the speed limit from 55 mph to 45.

"But it's not enough," Ibarra's wife, Kelly, said. "People come flying over that hill like a bat out of hell."

"If they don't get a stoplight in here, it's going to keep happening, especially with the growth," Ibarra added.

Hartline said it wasn't clear in which direction the female driver was attempting to turn when she pulled out in front of Daniel Burns, 40, of Dayton.

Burns' Chevy Blazer struck the woman's Chrysler New Yorker in the passenger door. Another vehicle, driven by Donovan Cotton, 64, of Silver Springs attempted to avoid the collision, but glanced off the front of the Chrysler, Hartline said.

Both men voluntarily submitted to a blood draw to test for drugs and alcohol, but Hartline said there was no indication either was under the influence.

"It doesn't appear they were at fault," he said.