A late-night walk on Bethel Road SE ended in tragedy Tuesday when a 41-year-old Silverdale man was struck and killed near SE Van Skiver Road in unincorporated Port Orchard. Deputies with the Kitsap County Sheriff's Office arrived just after 11 p.m. and found the man, who was later pronounced dead, authorities said. The driver of the truck involved in the crash was questioned at the scene.
According to KIRO 7, deputies identified the driver as a 24-year-old Port Orchard man who told investigators he had been heading south on Bethel Road and did not see the pedestrian before the impact. He voluntarily took field sobriety tests and a portable breathalyzer, which deputies said showed he was not impaired. The Kitsap Interagency Traffic Team has been called in to handle the investigation.
How investigators will probe what happened
The Kitsap Interagency Traffic Team (KITT) is the county's go-to unit for serious crashes, stepping in to reconstruct collisions and sort out what might have gone wrong. As detailed by Kitsap Daily News, KITT members document physical evidence, interview witnesses and pull data from vehicle recorders, often called "black boxes." They can also deploy drones and 3D laser scanners to recreate crash scenes. Sgt. Andy Aman told the outlet that "the purpose of KITT is to provide consistent, thorough investigations," and the findings typically end up on a prosecutor's desk for review.
Intersection flagged in county safety plan
The junction of Bethel Road SE and SE Van Skiver Road is already on the county's radar as a spot to watch. It appears in Kitsap County planning documents as a location being examined for crash trends and pedestrian needs. The county's 2024 Comprehensive Safety Action Plan, which lists the intersection among those slated for analysis, lays out possible countermeasures aimed at reducing crashes and improving safety for people walking and driving in the area, according to Kitsap County.
Authorities have not yet released additional details about the victim or said whether any charges are on the table, KIRO 7 reported. KITT investigators often look for any available video from nearby homes and businesses, including doorbell and Ring-style cameras, and may spend hours or even days rebuilding a crash scene before turning their work over to prosecutors, Kitsap Daily News notes. Anyone with footage or information is urged to contact the Kitsap County Sheriff's Office as the investigation continues.
