Pedestrian struck, killed by semi in Waukesha County
A pedestrian was struck and killed by a semi on I-94 in Waukesha County near Oconomowoc on Wednesday, May 17 about 5:30 p.m. Various media reports say the man was ejected from his motorcycle due to the impact of the crash. “Officials with the Waukesha County Sheriff’s Department said the male pedestrian was located deceased […]
A pedestrian was struck and killed by a semi on I-94 in Waukesha County near Oconomowoc on Wednesday, May 17 about 5:30 p.m. Various media reports say the man was ejected from his motorcycle due to the impact of the crash.
“Officials with the Waukesha County Sheriff’s Department said the male pedestrian was located deceased from his injuries,” an article by FOX 6 News reports. “The driver of the semi wasn’t hurt.”
Westbound traffic was completely shut down during an investigation into the incident for several hours at Highway 67.
No other details about the crash had been released to the public as of Friday morning, including the names of those involved and whether or not the driver of the semi is facing charges in connection to the fatal crash.
The cause of the crash is still under investigation.
In 2001 one pedestrian was injured or killed every 5 hours and 12 minutes in Wisconsin. About 60 pedestrians are killed each year in Wisconsin and another 350 are seriously injured. Another 1,200 or more suffer injuries ranging from minor to serious, but not incapacitating. Only 36 pedestrians escaped injury in these crashes, according to information released by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation.
Pedestrian traffic injuries have declined from 2,144 in 1984 to 1,648 in 2000. Unfortunately, the rate of fatalities has not improved much over this same time period. Pedestrian fatalities in Wisconsin range between 50 to 65 deaths per year, 50 in 2000. Only 40 of the injured in pedestrian crashes were occupants of the vehicles.
Pedestrians ages 75 and older showed the highest rate of fatalities. Older pedestrians do not have the same ability to recover from their injuries as younger pedestrians, and many may take longer to cross the street or have difficulty seeing or hearing traffic clearly.
Children ages 5-9 also showed a high rate of injury. They are most at risk due to their limited understanding of traffic laws and little sense of danger.
Preliminary data by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation shows that 20 pedestrians have been killed in Wisconsin so far this year, up from a total of 14 in 2016.
