White silhouettes elicit remembrance of Seattle traffic deaths 234 people have been killed in Seattle traffic incidents in 10 years

The family of Sandhya Khadka, a 17-year-old girl who was killed by a drunk driver while crossing a Pinehurst street in 2014, honors her memory with one of the hundreds of white silhouettes posted throughout the city to commemorate victims of traffic crashes. less The family of Sandhya Khadka, a 17-year-old girl who was killed by a drunk driver while crossing a Pinehurst street in 2014, honors her memory with one of the hundreds of white silhouettes posted throughout the ... more Photo: Cathy Tuttle/Seattle Neighborhood Greenways Photo: Cathy Tuttle/Seattle Neighborhood Greenways Image 1 of / 8 Caption Close White silhouettes elicit remembrance of Seattle traffic deaths 1 / 8 Back to Gallery

Sandhya Khadka was 17 years old when she crossed a Pinehurst street to catch the bus and was hit by a drunk driver.

She died at the scene. Since the 2014 incident, her family and Seattle's Nepali community have advocated for safety improvements in the area of Northeast 115th Street and Fifth Avenue Northeast, the intersection where she was hit. A crosswalk was added in the neighborhood and residents continue to campaign for increased traffic safety.

But on Nov. 20, it was a day of remembrance for Khadka and her family. Her parents, aunts and friends erected a white silhouette in her memory at the site of her death, as a way to honor her as well as a reminder to the public that people from all walks of life die in traffic incidents regularly.

Her silhouette is among the 212 distributed across the city for World Remembrance Day, a United Nations-affiliated event which recognizes victims of traffic incidents. Seattle Neighborhood Greenways coordinated the posting of the silhouettes along with 20 community groups.

You may have seen several of the silhouettes in your neighborhood or on your commute route -- 54 volunteers posted them everywhere from Lake City to Rainier Beach, with information about the victim at each crash site. Among the volunteers were friends and family members of victims, such as Khadka's family.

"It's the kind of thing that cuts across classes and genders and ages," SNG Executive Director Cathy Tuttle said. "Those people are mourning their loved one in a very different way than an ordinary death."

SNG indicates that 234 people suffered traffic-related deaths in Seattle from 2006 to 2016, including pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists. During that time, 2,400 more have been seriously injured. However, only 212 silhouettes were put up because the remaining locations were too dangerous to send volunteers, such as Interstate 5 and the Spokane Street onramp.

Each silhouette includes, at minimum, the date the victim died and a sticker to describe World Remembrance Day. With the consent of victims' families, many of the silhouettes include more information, from the person's name to the story of his or her death.

The silhouettes will remain until they're torn up, blown down or otherwise rendered ineffective, Tuttle said. Meanwhile, people are learning from them.

One man reported that he passes seven of the silhouettes during his regular bike commute from Greenwood to Downtown, Tuttle said. Others have slowed their driving to read the stories on the figures.

Bryce Lewis is one of the victims commemorated by the figures. He moved to Seattle at 19 years old to be with his best friend, his memorial silhouette reads. While both of them rode their bikes in an Eastlake bike lane, they were hit by a dump truck. The friend survived, but Lewis died.

Khadka was already taking college business courses at 17 and hoped to become a business executive, Tuttle said.

"She just had the whole world to look forward to," she added.

The hanging of her memorial silhouette marked the first time her parents could bear visiting the scene of her death.

Seattle reduced standard speed limits this month, changing the residential speed limit from 25 mph to 20 mph and "center city" speed limits from 30 mph to 25 mph.

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