Clearwater Man Involved in Deadly Palm Harbor Crash
A Clearwater man in a BMW ran a red light at the intersection of Curlew and McMullen Booth roads, killing a 54-year-old Holiday man in a pickup truck, investigators said Wednesday morning.
Updated, 9:56 a.m.: The man killed in the crash has been identified as Robert Henry Raymer Jr., 54, of Holiday.
A Holiday man was killed early Wednesday morning at the intersection of McMullen Booth and Curlew roads in Palm Harbor when his pickup truck was hit by a Clearwater man who ran a red light, investigators said.
Robert Henry Raymer Jr., 54, was headed eastbound on Curlew shortly after 5:30 a.m. when a BMW failed to stop for the red light on McMullen Booth and hit the pickup truck's passenger side, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
Raymer suffered fatal injuries and died at the scene, investigators said. He was wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash.
The driver of the BMW, 29-year-old Jonathan Peter Bytautas of Clearwater, was taken to St. Joseph Hospital with serious injuries.
The vehicles collided with a third vehicle, a pickup truck, during the crash. That driver, 60-year-old George Neil Paajanen of Palm Harbor, suffered minor injuries and was not hospitalized.
This incident remains under investigation. No charges were immediately filed, and it's not yet known if alcohol was a factor in the crash.
Stay with Clearwater Patch and sign up for our free email newsletter for updates to this story.
Ronald Joseph Kule
12:34 pm on Thursday, December 13, 2012
It would be a good idea to also check if cell phone use or texting was involved, which is increasingly a factor in accidents.
Margaret Miller
9:18 pm on Thursday, December 13, 2012
Rob Raymer was a wonderful, witty, spirited, and kind human being. He was deeply in love with his girlfriend Christine There life together was complete and happy. She and all who knew Rob are deeply grieving. This will not bring Rob back, but I am angry at the selfish man who ran the red light and killed a great man, patriot (actively involved in the Coast Guard auxiliary), former police officer, and overall lovely human being.
Margaret Miller
9:18 pm on Thursday, December 13, 2012
I meant to write "their" and not "there"..."Their life together..."
Zigsauered
2:38 pm on Monday, December 17, 2012
Studies have proved that any traffic signal causes death and accidents. People watch the light and not the traffic. Just google it. Traffic signals are needed in the US to create tax for the government at a huge cost.