THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, December 24, 1994 TAG: 9412240294
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JUDY PARKER AND JANIE BRYANT, STAFF WRITERS
DATELINE: PORTSMOUTH LENGTH: Medium: 67 lines
A much-loved local physician died early Friday when his car struck a tree while he was on his way to deliver a baby.
Dr. Phillip M. Park, a 54-year-old obstetrician and gynecologist, was headed for Portsmouth General Hospital when the single-car accident occurred about 5 a.m. in the 3500 block of High St.
He was pronounced dead at the scene, police spokesman Cpl. G.A. Brown said.
The doctor's 1990 Oldsmobile minivan struck orange, plastic traffic barrels in the 3600 block of High St., then swerved, a witness said. It appeared that Park regained control of the van and avoided a telephone pole before hitting the tree.
The death has not been ruled a traffic fatality, pending the results of an autopsy, Brown said. Police have not ruled out the possibility that Park had a medical problem that caused him to have the accident.
Friends, patients and people in the medical community were stunned as word of Park's death traveled through Portsmouth and Western Branch. His home and office are in Western Branch.
``It will be impossible to replace him in the medical community of Portsmouth,'' said Hunter Brantley, a past president of Portsmouth General's board and currently a member of the PGH Foundation. ``This is just a devastating loss to Portsmouth.''
Dr. F.D. Mistry had known Park since 1979.
``We covered one another when we were first starting out at Portsmouth General,'' he said. ``There was not a more dedicated physician in Portsmouth. I'm shaken up completely.''
Dr. Phillip R. Thomason, vice president of the Portsmouth Academy of Medicine, said Park ``had so much to offer. This has left everyone in a state of shock.''
The Rev. Walter C. Hunting of Green Acres Presbyterian Church, where Park and his wife served as elders, said: ``There are hundreds of people scattered about that he served as a physician. He probably had one of the largest OB-GYN practices in Portsmouth.''
Park had been on the staff of Maryview Medical Center since 1975, said Louise Eidson, Maryview's vice president for marketing.
Park, Eidson said, had been elected by his peers to chair Maryview's Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology four or five times in the past 10 years. He was president of the hospital's medical staff in 1990 and served on the Bon Secours Maryview Health Corp. board of directors in 1989. He was an associate clinical professor at Eastern Virginia Medical School.
Park was a native of Hammond, Ind., and went to medical school at West Virginia University. He completed an internship and residency at Philadelphia Naval Hospital before coming to the Portsmouth Naval Hospital in 1969.
Survivors include his wife, Janie L. Park; a daughter, Maria C. Park of Chesapeake; his parents, Nora S. Park and Karl L. Park Sr. of Chesapeake; and a brother, Karl L. Park Jr. of Chesapeake.
A funeral will be held at 2 p.m. Tuesday at Green Acres Presbyterian Church. Snellings Funeral Home-Churchland, 5815 W. High St., is handling arrangements. Park's family has asked that donations be made to the American Heart Association or the American Cancer Society. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
Dr. Phillip M. Park
KEYWORDS: ACCIDENT TRAFFIC FATALITY by CNB