Witnesses say the driver had no chance to avoid hitting the jay-walking man …
SE Foster Road is temporarily closed, while paramedics rescue a man whom witnesses say dashed across the road, far from any marked crosswalk.
Story and photos by David F. Ashton
Saturday afternoon traffic came to a standstill on May 30 – and then just trickled by the scene of a car-versus-pedestrian accident on SE Foster Road, about 100 feet east of SE 111 Avenue.
Two witnesses confirmed that a pedestrian was quickly walking south, from the driveway of the Arco service station, weaving between westbound cars that were stopped on SE Foster Road at a red traffic signal on SE 111th Avenue.
An AMR paramedic looks at the result of the impact between the car and pedestrian that leaves a car with a smashed windshield and a torn-off mirror.
“I was eastbound on Foster,” said witness Fred Baylor. “I was stopped at the light. I saw the man jog, almost sprinting, through the stopped cars.
“As he got to the left-hand turning lane, a [westbound] car, trying to go south, struck the guy,” Baylor told East Portland News. “The man smashed into the windshield, and was thrown into the air before he landed on the pavement.”
Witness Ellie Metcalfe said she was waiting for a bus when the accident took place. “I couldn’t figure out why the man didn’t just cross at the crosswalk. Because of the stopped traffic, I didn’t see him get hit, but I did see him fly up into the air. I thought for sure he was dead.”
Paramedics splint a badly broken ankle, and stabilize the patient, while he is still lying on the pavement.
But, apparently the crash victim survived. He was carefully packaged up by Portland Fire & Rescue Engine 29 paramedics and the AMR ambulance crew.
Reportedly the man was taken to OHSU, reportedly with a badly-broken ankle, broken ribs, and a lacerated face – but otherwise in remarkably good condition for someone struck by a moving car.
Officers at the scene talk to witnesses, and the driver of the car.
Now on a gurney, the survivor of the crash is rolled to the waiting ambulance.
The driver was released, according to a Portland Police Bureau sergeant at that location, without citation. “In any circumstance, when a pedestrian is walking in front of cars that are stopped, they should always check to make sure each lane is safe before continuing,” the sergeant said.
“In this case,” the sergeant added, “it appears as if the driver had no opportunity to avoid this accident – this collision with the pedestrian.”
© 2015 David F. Ashton ~ East Portland News
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