Man in wheelchair hit, killed by car in SW Oklahoma City

OKLAHOMA CITY ( KFOR ) – A man in a wheelchair was hit and killed by a car , while crossing the street during Friday morning’s rainstorm.

“Dark, dark roadway, dark clothing, and rain coming down. That’s just a terrible combination,” said Msgt. Gary Knight with the Oklahoma City Police Department.

Around 6:15 a.m. on Friday, just before the morning rush hour, our 4Warn Storm team said nearly two inches of rain fell quickly near Southwest 29th and Kentucky.

“The man in the wheelchair, for whatever reason, was crossing the street mid-block,” said Knight.

Oklahoma City Police said a car hit the man, killing him. The driver stayed on scene.

“It doesn’t have a lot of lighting so you have to be very careful,” said Leona Stephenson.

Stephenson uses public transportation in the area. She said it’s dark at night and she has to stay on alert.

“Right here, there’s a hill right here so it’s kind of hard for them to see me,” said Stephenson.

OKCPD said when pedestrians are sharing the area with drivers in vehicles, it’s best to cross at a crosswalk.

While there’s no indication the driver in Friday’s accident was distracted, Stephenson said crosswalks don’t always help. Especially when it comes to people on their phones or just not paying attention.

“They don’t even respect the crosswalks that well,” said Stpehenson.

So far, the victim’s name has not been released.

Police said the driver showed no signs of being impaired.

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