A UCSF doctor was killed and four others were injured on Thursday in a collision involving a big-rig truck and a shuttle bus at Oak Street and Octavia Boulevard, an intersection that residents say is notoriously dangerous for motorists.
Dr. Kevin Mack, 52, was killed after being ejected from a UCSF shuttle but that collided with the big rig at around 6:20 a.m. in the Hayes Valley neighborhood. The four injured passengers — whose ages range between 58 and 85 — were transported to a local hospital in fair condition, UCSF spokeswoman Elizabeth Fernandez said. The driver of the shuttle bus suffered minor injuries, while the big-rig driver was unhurt.
Mack, an associate professor at UCSF, was an expert in bipolar and psychotic disorders based at San Francisco General Hospital, Fernandez said. He’s survived by his husband and two kids.
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“He had a strong commitment to global health and to medical education in resource settings,” Dr. A. Sue Carlisle said. “He was an exceptional role model and inspiration for all of the educational community at UCSF.”
The Police Department is looking at video footage from the scene to determine if either vehicle was at fault, police said.
The truck was leased to Mag Transportation of South Carolina. According to a company employee, who declined to be named, the driver, Victor, lives in Massachusetts.
Victor told his colleagues he had a green light at the intersection and the shuttle bus came out of nowhere, the employee said.
“Victor is a great guy who is real shaken up about this,” he said.
Although conditions have improved in recent years, the intersection of Oak and Octavia has a history of accidents.
In 2006, the first year freeway traffic came to the intersection, there were 14 injury accidents — the most in The City that year.
But the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency has improved signal timing, upgraded signal hardware, added more striping and installed a red-light camera, spokesman Paul Rose said. Last year, there were four injury accidents at the intersection.
But Hayes Valley resident Jason Henderson said more improvements are necessary. Fell and Oak streets should be changed to two-lane thoroughfares to slow down traffic flow, he said, and parking control officers should be dispatched to direct motorists.
Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, whose district includes the intersection, said a full assessment should be taken to examine safety conditions.
