January 26, 2012: A Sedro-Woolley man was walking along a road in Skagit County last evening when he collapsed and fell unconscious to the road. Tragically, he was then struck and killed by a passing car or truck, which left the scene. My heart aches for the family.
Of course, we don’t know if the man had already died, or if the truck driver had a reasonable chance to avoid him. But leaving the scene? After hitting a human being? Yes, I realize he may not have been sure, but that driver surely must have known he hit something pretty sizeable. And if he was paying attention, he surely could have seen it looked like a person, even if he saw that only in the last millisecond. I’m having a hard time trying to think of any justification for his not stopping.
Anyone who reads what I post on this site knows I’m all about finding ways to prevent car accidents. All types of accidents, for that matter. So how could this tragic pedestrian accident have been prevented? We don’t know for sure what the conditions were, but generally any pedestrian needs to stay off the roadway if at all possible, especially at night. Still, when he collapsed, he might have fallen toward the road and landed on it. Check out my other tips on avoiding car-pedestrian accidents.
What about the driver? Is he liable (other than for the hit-and-run)? I don’t know. But if we all practice greater vigilance, always watching the roadway for the unexpected, we will probably reduce the number of incidents like this. As I’ve said before, we can prevent car accidents by treating driving as a full-time job.
Although it will not take away their pain, when they can deal with it, the man’s family should definitely contact a personal injury attorney for a free consultation to determine their rights and whether they should pursue a wrongful death claim.
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