Young Man in a Wheelchair Struck This Morning Near McLean High School

Cris C. Dean January 4, 2012 at 02:22 am

No life threating injuries because of the grace of God. He has 4 or 5 broken vertebrae and is in Fairfax Hospital.

David Benson January 4, 2012 at 02:05 pm

This is not at all surprising. Drivers in McLean are the most careless drivers I've ever encountered. They regularly ignore traffic laws and put pedestrians in danger.
If they're not turning right on red while they're still looking left,they're honking at pedestrians in the crosswalk or refusing to yield the right of way. What most drivers either don't know or don't care about (I supect it's the latter) is that pedestrians have the right of way in a crosswalk if the speed limit is 35MPH or less. That's not to say a pedestrian can step in front of a car and make it swerve to avoid an accident, but when you're on Dolley Madison running past J. Gilberts and the library, pedestrians have the right of way in those crosswalks and you should yield. But drivers rarely, if ever, yield to pedestrians there or at the crosswalk on Kirby just before the Old Dominion overpass. I wish this young man a speedy recovery. And I wish the rest of you would quit playing chicken with pedestrians.

Bobbi Bowman January 4, 2012 at 03:11 pm

Thank you so much for your note. Our hopes and prayers go with you. Please let us know his progress.

BN January 4, 2012 at 06:54 pm

I am glad he is going to recover. I was several feet away when it happened. Thankfully, the driver was going slow and reacted immediately. Unfortunately, because of the bumper-to-bumper traffic at the time, the young man crossed behind a stopped car that was going to MHS. The car that hit the young man was coming from MHS and there was only a foot or so between the cars since the young man was crossing at a very narrow part of the road where there is no cross walk. I don't let my kids cross there for that reason - it is too dangerous. There was no way for the oncoming car to see the young man or avoid hitting him. Three seconds before the accident, I told my two kids, whom I was driving to school, that guy is going to get hit crossing there. Sadly, that is what happened. I am glad he is doing well and felt terrible for him, his Mom who witnessed it, and the driver. Kids frequently come close to getting hit there. Davidson Road is not capable of accomodating the volume of car and bus traffic that MHS generates for school and sports activities. Until it is no longer used as an entrance to the school, more kids will be at risk. The HS and the County really need to address the problem.

Elizabeth January 6, 2012 at 01:22 am

I was the first responder at the scene that had any medical training. I stabilized his head until firemen arrived. I hope that he has a speedy recovery. I am hoping that this will have kids thinking about what they are wearing before they go out the door. Lighter colored clothes help during that time of the day. Please parents encourage your kids to always be aware of what is going on around them. Both my teen agers know this young man and my mom taught him while he was a Franklin Sherman. Prayers with him and his family

BN January 6, 2012 at 03:32 am

I was standing next to him and did not see you but thanks for providing medical assistance. Parents, please drive slowly on Davidson, tell your kids to drive slowly on Davidson, and do not drop your children off in driveways without cross walks. Every day I see kids almost get hit. This morning, a day after, a girl was walking at 7:15 AM on Davidson in dark clothing reading her smart phone. She almost was hit twice. Davidson Road barely has room for one car in each lane. Walking in the street is STUPID. What is shocking is that the sidewalk was two feet away and my daughter said: "Why doesn't she walk on the sidewalk. She is going to get hit like the boy yesterday." It was a good lesson for my kids to see what can happen when you are not careful. But it is a terrible way to teach your kids a lesson. MHS needs to do a better job of teaching our kids to be smart. If you walk in the middle of the street in dark clothes when it is not completely light, you are taking on a huge risk. Getting hit by a car going 10 MPH is enough to kill you. I suggest MHS close the Davidson entrance or take steps to reduce or control the traffic.

Elizabeth January 6, 2012 at 12:23 pm

Once the firemen got there I left. Unfortunately it's not only kids that don't use the sidewalks. I drive for work and see it everywhere all the time. If I had a nickle for everytime I saw a person walking on the road or riding a bike with headphones in I would be a very rich woman