A boy was left in critical condition Friday afternoon after being struck by a vehicle at the intersection of Chelsea Avenue and North Seventh Street in North Memphis. Memphis police responded to the scene at 3:44 p.m. and found the teen in need of medical attention before he was rushed to a hospital.
According to WREG, the male juvenile was taken to the hospital in critical condition after the crash. The vehicle involved remained at the scene, and as Action News 5 reports, Memphis police are still investigating exactly what happened at the North Memphis intersection.
No further details about the driver, the cause of the crash, or the teen's condition beyond critical have been released as the investigation continues.
A City Already Reeling From Pedestrian Crashes
Friday's crash adds to a grim tally for Memphis in 2026. More than 200 pedestrian crashes, including 22 fatal incidents, have been reported in the city so far this year, per a report from Local Memphis. That pace has put the city under renewed scrutiny from safety advocates and researchers tracking pedestrian deaths nationwide.
Smart Growth America's latest Dangerous by Design report ranks Memphis as the deadliest metro area in the country for pedestrians for the second consecutive time, with a fatality rate of 5.5 deaths per 100,000 people annually, the organization's analysis found. The report notes that Memphis pedestrian deaths nearly doubled, climbing from an average of 44 fatalities a year between 2015 and 2019 to 74 fatalities a year between 2020 and 2024.
Nearly One Death Every Five Days
The scale of the problem is stark in the report's own framing: someone is killed on Memphis roads almost every five days, according to the findings. The same analysis counted 13 pedestrian-involved crashes across the city in just the week before the report was published, underscoring how routine these incidents have become.
Memphis has received a $6.8 million Safe Streets for All grant intended to fund roadway-safety improvements, per the Smart Growth America report. The Dangerous by Design 2026 report ranks all 50 states and the 101 largest U.S. metro areas for pedestrian deaths, finding that more than 80 percent of metro areas nationwide have grown more dangerous for people on foot over time.
Friday's crash remains under active investigation, and no additional information about the boy's condition has been released since he was taken to the hospital.
