Teen hit by SUV walking to school in the dark

Writer: Derrick Shaw
Published: Updated:

A teen was injured after he was hit by a car while walking to school in Cape Coral Monday.

The mother of the teen told us her 15-year-old son was walking to Mariner High School when it was still dark outside.

According to the crash report, the teen was crossing Burnt Store Road N. near NW 9th Terrace in a crosswalk at 5:30 in the morning.

The driver of a Honda CRV SUV said they didn’t see him until it was too late and swerved to the left, hitting the teen in the head with the side-view mirror.

“He was knocked unconscious,” the mother said. “He was bloody. His face is in pretty bad shape, but he will be OK.”

The teen suffered facial injuries and was treated by EMS at the scene, refusing to be taken to the hospital.

The deputy said in the report that the “pedestrian was running which caused his head to be slightly lowered to the level of the mirror.”

The location where the crash took place is in an area that is extremely dark and not lit. There is also no traffic control signal for the pedestrian or the vehicles.

The driver was not cited for the crash because tt was “extremely difficult to see pedestrians in the crosswalk due to the lack of lighting in the area,” the deputy said.

John Jacobs with the NW Cape Coral Neighborhood Association said, “They have $3.8 million budget surplus because Amendment 1 did not pass. I’d like to see at least $1 million of that money go into sidewalks and street lights in Northwest Cape.”

“We need to be aware that when you’re driving especially during anytime of school hour,” said Master Sgt. Allan Kolak, asking drivers to be vigilant. “Kids do have to get on the bus sometimes several hours before the actual school starts.”

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