A pedestrian was struck by a vehicle and left in critical condition early Wednesday morning at the intersection of East Broad Street and North Ohio Avenue on Columbus's east side, in a crash police are investigating as a hit-skip. Columbus Division of Police officers responded to the scene just after 6 a.m. on a report of a pedestrian struck, and the driver did not remain at the scene, according to a public safety dispatcher.
As reported by 10TV, the pedestrian was transported to a hospital in critical condition, per the dispatcher. South Ohio Avenue was blocked at East Broad Street as officers worked the scene. No information was immediately available on a suspect or on what led up to the crash, the outlet noted.
A Legal Duty to Stop, Regardless of Fault
A Legal Duty to Stop, Regardless of Fault
Columbus police route serious-injury and felony hit-skip cases like this one to a specialized Accident Investigation Unit, which gathers public tips and works with Central Ohio Crime Stoppers, per the City of Columbus. Anonymous tips can be submitted to Crime Stoppers.
A Corridor Already Flagged as High-Risk
A Corridor Already Flagged as High-Risk
The city has planned improvements to parts of the corridor. A two-mile safety reconfiguration on East Broad Street cut total vehicle crashes by more than half and reduced excessive speeding by 89% in its initial evaluation through 2025, NACTO reports. A historical study found that a 12.74-mile stretch of West Broad Street, along US Route 40, recorded 25 fatalities between 2018 and 2022. Broad Street also has sidewalk gaps and high-speed traffic.
Early-Morning Darkness a Persistent Risk
Wednesday's crash fits a seasonal pattern safety researchers have tracked for years. Pedestrian crashes tend to peak during autumn months like October, and nearly 77% of fatal pedestrian collisions nationally occur after dark or in low-light conditions, according to the Law Office of O'Connor Acciani & Levy. Franklin County leads all 88 Ohio counties in pedestrian-related collisions, recording 2,749 pedestrian crashes over a five-year period, the firm's analysis of Ohio State Highway Patrol data found.
The intersection sits along the East Broad Street Historic District in East Columbus, which includes residences and East High School, according to Wikipedia.
Recent pedestrian collisions have also occurred along East Broad Street.
No information was immediately available on a suspect or what led up to the crash. It remains unclear whether cameras at the Ohio Avenue intersection captured the vehicle that fled, or whether the Accident Investigation Unit has identified a suspect.
