A motorist struck and killed a 2-year-old boy Sunday afternoon after the toddler snuck out the front door of his family's home in the Bayshore Gardens area.
Young Eduardo Betanzo-Reyes was hit as he pushed his plastic orange Jeep near the intersection of 61st Avenue West and 12th Street West, said Trooper Sean McCormick with the Florida Highway Patrol.
Just before 1:20 p.m., Robert Pinkston, 55, of Bradenton, was traveling east on 61st Avenue West in a 2006 Nissan Frontier when Eduardo ran into the roadway with his toy, McCormick said.
"The driver made a right onto 12th Street West and ran over the child," McCormick said.
The toddler was taken by medical helicopter to All Children's Hospital in St. Petersburg.
He was pronounced dead shortly after, the result of head trauma, McCormick said.
FHP Sgt. William Pascoe said the toddler's parents, Pedro and Maria, were inside the house when Eduardo got out.
His parents believe Eduardo's 5-year-old sister may have opened the front door, allowing her brother to escape, Pascoe said.
As of Sunday evening, the accident remained under investigation and no charges had been filed.
Pascoe said troopers plan to continue to interview witnesses during the next few days.
Neighbor Lee Fuller, 30, said he was sitting on his porch when the chaos began.
"I heard screaming, hollering," Fuller said as he stood in the street. "(Eduardo's) dad ran out into the street, picked him up and laid him in the grass."
Meanwhile, neighbor Anissa Lawson -who lives directly next door to Eduardo - said she watched Pinkston dial 911.
"He was on the phone saying he didn't see the kid," said Lawson, 35.
Eduardo's mother ran to her son's side, clutched onto him and would not let go, said another neighbor, Angelica Gutzwillier, who attempted to render aid to the toddler.
"I tried to give him CPR," Gutzwillier said, fighting back tears. "They're great parents. I've never seen the kids outside without their parents. It breaks my heart to watch them go through something like this."
Southern Manatee Fire & Rescue Acting Battalion Chief Wayne Lambert said the fire department set up a helicopter landing zone in the parking lot of Daughtery Elementary, 515 63rd Ave. E.
"When I got there he was laying right off the side of the road," Lambert said.
The street, he said, was conjested with pedestrians who watched the melee.
Neighbors, including Lawson and Fuller, looked up at stop signs at the four-way intersection, then shook their heads.
Drivers, they say, frequently disobey them.
"Watch-for-children signs, speed bumps, something needs to be done," said Fuller, who has two children, ages 5 and 9.
On Saturday night, Fuller said he watched five people run the signs.
Lawson said that in the last two weeks 11 cars have careened into a ditch outside her home.
And earlier this year, one car that flew through the intersection hit the front of her house.
"Nobody will do anything about this intersection," Lawson said.
Hours after the accident as a light rain fell, Eduardo's father sat on his front porch with his head buried in his hands.
Troopers, who remained outside the residence at about 6 p.m., said he and his wife had just returned from the hospital.
Family members, some who wept, stood by Pedro offering words of comfort in Spanish.
"I've never had my children outside without supervision," Pedro cried out through the use of an interpreter.
The family, from Oaxaca, Mexico, moved into the neighborhood about seven months ago, Pedro said.
He said he plans to have his son's body taken back to Mexico to be buried there.
E-Mail
Print
@Nyx.CommentBody@