Nine-year-old dies after being hit by semi truck on US 50 east of Pueblo

PUEBLO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) – Authorities have confirmed that a nine-year-old child is dead after being hit by a semi-truck at around 5:30 a.m. Monday morning on westbound US 50, five miles east of Pueblo.

According to the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), the child was pronounced dead on the scene. Colorado State Patrol (CSP) says the child was walking from the Oakwood Estates Mobile Home Park before sunrise and was crossing the highway when he was struck. They say the truck driver cooperated with the investigation and stayed on the scene this morning.

CSP is investigating the truck's mechanics, and they say they will question the parent when they have had a chance to grieve. They say the driver of the truck is from the Pueblo area.

"Maybe it'll make, you know, give these guys some awareness that they need to stay inside the community until it's time to go to school," Grant Wickham, a nearby resident said.

Wickham says he thinks he knows the child and says he is both shocked and horrified.

"He was a great kid I mean, no problems out of him at all," Wickham said.

Currently, there are no pending charges on the case and none have been filed.

The accident forced the temporary closure of westbound highway traffic at the Cottonwood Avenue intersection;' it reopened late Monday morning.

Pueblo County deputies also responded to the scene, but the State Patrol is the lead investigative agency.

"We're still waiting for the investigators on scene to provide us with more information," said Sgt. Patrick Rice of the State Patrol.

KRDO13 spoke with several residents of Oakwood Estates who said that they were asleep at the time and were unaware of the incident.