Families Await Answers 1 Year After Fatal Crash On Blake Lane

FAIRFAX, VA — Anyone driving or walking along Blake Lane in the Fairfax area will encounter a small shrine that has been established just south of the Five Oaks Road intersection.

Flowers, candles, crosses, rosaries and handwritten signs mark the spot where three students walking home from Oakton High School were struck by a speeding car driven by a fellow student on June 7, 2022.

Two of the victims, Ada Gabriela Martinez Nolasco and Leeyan Hanjia Yan, died from their injuries. The surviving victim continues to recover from her injuries, her mother told Patch on Wednesday, and asked that she not be identified.

"She's doing well, if we can say that," the mother said. "She's sad. She's depressed." Asked about her daughter's physical injuries, the woman answered, "She still has some issues, but she's doing good."

One year after the fatal crash and the victims' families are still waiting for answers.

"We're trying to follow everything we can, but we still don't have any results or any decision," the mother of the surviving victim said.

One year ago on Wednesday afternoon, 18-year-old Usman Shahid was driving a 2018 BMW at a high-rate of speed south on Blake Lane, when he struck a 4Runner making a turn at Five Oaks Road, according to police.

The BMW continued traveling south and struck the three teens, who were walking on the sidewalk. The car then came to a rest further down Blake Lane after hitting a utility pole.

On June 22, 2022, a Fairfax County grand jury indicted Shahid on two counts of manslaughter in Martinez Nolasco and Hanjia Yan's deaths.

Usman appeared in court on July 8, 2022 and was released on a $250,000 unsecured bond. His trial is scheduled for July 24, 2023 in Fairfax Circuit Court, according to the Commonwealth Attorney's Office.

For residents living along the Blake Lane corridor, the incident is another example of the pedestrian and traffic safety issues they've observed along the roadway.

"We're where we were 20 years ago, when a student was struck and killed walking home from school," said Aimee Emmerich, whose son was a classmate of the three students struck last year. "The road is still dangerous. Students' cars are still speeding. Cars are driving into crosswalks, where pedestrians have a green light."

In the aftermath of last year's deadly crash, the county has taken a number of steps to address residents' concerns.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved the installation of “$200 additional fines for speeding” and "Watch for Children" signs on Blake Lane. Last August, Fairfax County Public Schools moved bus stops serving all grade levels off of Blake Lane.

On May 30, the Virginia Department of Transportation hosted a public meeting to share the initial observations of the Blake Lane Road Safety Audit, which was started last December and is expected to be completed later this year.

"I'm just really frustrated that we've seen some Band-Aid fixes, like they moved the school bus stops, which is a nice move," said Andrea Falkenhagen-Natekar, who started a Facebook group, which advocates for large-scale changes that will improve safety on Blake Lane. "But there's been no significant changes to the safety of this road one year later."

Falkenhagen-Natekar would like to see county officials demonstrate a greater sense of urgency in addressing this problem.

"Right now, we understand that some of these engineering fixes and things like that take a long time, but there's some stuff that could be done much more quickly," she said. "For example, making this a school zone."

Last fall, FCPS began looking at creating a school zone near Oakton High School, as part of the Speed Camera Pilot program meant to improve safety, prevent accidents, and protect pedestrians and motorists.

"We were told that it would be January or February when it would be done and here we are June and it's still not a school zone," she said. "Now they're telling us maybe fall, but they can't give us a concrete date. It's things like this that make it really frustrating for people. That should be pretty low hanging fruit."

Related:

• 2 Dead, 2 Injured: Blake Lane Corridor Crashes Raise Safety Concerns
• Oakton High School Community Mourns Loss Of 2 Students Killed In Crash