He was heading home to Benque after a hard day’s work near Hattieville but Eduardo Flores didn’t make it home because he was knocked down and killed this afternoon on the Western Highway. It happened at mile 11 and our 7News team visited the scene and spoke to witnesses. Keith Swift has the story.
Keith Swift Reporting,
This spot of blood in the middle of the Western Highway at mile 11 marks the point of impact- where this Toyota pickup slammed into Eduardo Flores this afternoon. Flores and about 30 other men were working for a private contractor hired by one of the utility companies. They had finished working for the week and were heading home. Eduardo was crossing the highway to enter the bus for that trip back home to Benque. That’s when he was hit.
Francisco Perrera, Co-Worker/Witness
“We were working behind here, we were coming out from there and that bus was going to take them straight to Benque. The guys jumped from the trailer to get a ride in the bus. I heard something, I thought a tire bust from the pickup and when I see, the guy was lying on the street. That’s what I see.”
Joshua Zetina, Co-Worker/Witness
“From way there a vehicle was coming far from where that sign is when the guy was passing here. The only thing we heard is the knock. We saw when the guy was passing and we saw the vehicle. We only heard the impact because the vehicle dragged the man way where you see the blood. The vehicle knocked down the man and we stopped the vehicle because the man was looking to run. So we stopped the vehicle and let the vehicle take the man to the hospital because the heard was bumping.”
Keith Swift,
So he didn’t die on the scene?
Joshua Zetina,
“Well at the moment when they knocked him down, the man didn’t move or nothing but when he felt his heart, his heart was pumping so we made
the vehicle owner who knocked down this man, we let that man took him to the hospital.”
But Eduardo Flores later died in the pan of the pickup. The driver – seen here with his arm in a cast refused to talk to us. We do know though that his Toyota pickup received considerable damage to the left bump and driver side windshield.
Joshua Zetina,
“The vehicle was coming mostly I would tell you at about 90 to 95 (miles per hour). The man could have braked, the man could have braked but that man looked like he didn’t want to brake because the man could have braked. The man just past fly, passed the young bwoy. Yes the man was coming at speed. That is the only thing I have to say, the man was coming in a high speed because if the man was coming slow, this never would have happened.”
Eduardo Flores’ body was taken to the KHMH morgue where it awaits a post mortem. Police are investigating. The driver has not been charged and his name has not been released.
