OISD student, 13, hit outside crosswalk

Olney Police Chief Dan Birbeck urged parents to reacquaint children with the school crosswalk after a 13-yearold girl was hit by a car in an intersection on her way to school.

The girl was walking southbound at about 7:50 a.m. on May 14 and attempted to cross Main Street/State Highway 114 at Avenue J, which has no traffic light or crosswalk, Chief Birbeck said.

The teen ran across the road and was struck by a driver headed eastbound, he said.

The driver and a nearby state trooper stopped to assist the girl, who was transported to Olney Hamilton Hospital with non-life threatening injuries, he said.

The incident was captured on the state trooper’s rear vehicle camera, he said. The driver was not speeding or breaking any traffic laws, and was not cited, he said.

“The intersection was not a protected intersection and therefore it was the pedestrian’s responsibility to yield the right of way to the motor vehicle,” he said. “With the sun being low in the sky the driver did not see the pedestrian until she was in front of the car and the collision had already occurred.”

The school pays for a crosswalk attendant so parents should direct kids to that location, he said.

“Our crossing guard is going to ensure that traffic has come to a safe stop to flag children across the highway,” he said. “I know it’s a few blocks out of the way ... but it’s a lot safer for kids to [cross there],” he said.

The school crosswalk is located at Main Street and Avenue K.