Mourners Gather for Funeral of 4-Year-Old Girl Fatally Struck by SUV on Upper West Side

A 17-year-old driver allegedly hit Ariel Russo and her grandmother

Family and friends gathered at a Queens funeral home Sunday to mourn Ariel Russo, a 4-year-old girl who died after being struck by an SUV in Manhattan earlier this week.

Russo and her grandmother were hit by a 17-year-old driver with a learner's permit who was allegedly trying to evade police after he was pulled over for reckless driving. The teen, Franklin Reyes, was arrested on charges of vehicular manslaughter.

Russo died at the hospital a short time after she was struck. Her grandmother, who was also pinned by the SUV, is in stable condition.

A vigil was held Saturday for Russo, who was walking with her grandmother on the Upper West Side when they were hit Tuesday.

"She's just so young, she's 4 years old, and I feel like she died too young," said Kenneth Nixon Jr., a neighbor.

Compounding the family's grief, fire officials say "human error" within New York City's 911 system caused a more than four-minute delay in dispatching an ambulance to help Russo.

"Somebody made a mistake," New York City Fire Commissioner Salvatore Cassano said at a news briefing Friday.

Funeral services for Russo were being held at the Leo F. Kearns funeral home in Rego Park, Queens Sunday night.
 

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