A veteran crossing guard was struck and killed by a dump truck Friday morning while directing traffic outside of a Queens elementary school, police said.
Krystyna Naprawa, 63, was standing in the crosswalk on Woodhaven Boulevard when she was hit by the truck making a right-hand turn onto Atlantic Avenue at about 8 a.m., the NYPD said.
Naprawa — who has served as a crossing guard since 2010 — was pronounced dead at the scene, roughly 1,000 feet from PS 60.
The driver, Hector Yepes, 39, remained on the scene. He was slapped with a desk appearance ticket for failing to yield to a pedestrian and failure to use due care.
Dozens of members of the NYPD — which employs and supervises school crossing guards — lined up to salute Naprawa as her body was transferred to the medical examiner’s office in Manhattan, video shows.
Naprawa’s death stunned many across the city, including members of Port Authority Police Department, where her son has been a cop for 15 years.
“The members of the Port Authority PBA are shocked and saddened by the line-of-duty death of NYPD School Crossing Guard Krystyna Naprawa, mother of Port Authority Police Officer Tomasz Naprawa,” Port Authority PBA President Frank Conti said in a statement.
“SCG Naprawa was a precious member of the PAPD Family.”
Naprawa’s union, District Council 37, said it was “deeply saddened” by her death, which they claim was completely preventable.
“These heroes put their lives on the line for our kids and neighborhoods every day, and today’s tragedy makes that stark fact unavoidable,” union executive director Henry A. Garrido said.
“This is the third guard struck by a vehicle in just a matter of months— anything over zero is unacceptable.”