A pedestrian died Wednesday afternoon after a pickup truck struck him at the intersection of Airline Drive and Williams Boulevard in Kenner, one of the busiest crossings in the city. First responders rushed to the scene and began lifesaving measures, but the man died after being taken to a local hospital.
According to WDSU, Kenner police said they responded around 2:13 p.m. Wednesday to the crash involving a pedestrian at that intersection. Witnesses told officers that a pickup truck struck the man as he was in the roadway, the station reported. First responders immediately began lifesaving measures before the man was transported to a local hospital, where he later died from his injuries.
The driver of the pickup truck remained at the scene after the crash and is cooperating fully with investigators, according to WGNO, which also reported that all lanes of Airline Drive had reopened by 4:03 p.m. that afternoon. The same report, attributed to Kenner Police Department officials, noted the roughly two-hour window between the crash and the road fully reopening to traffic.
Investigation Still Open
As of Wednesday evening, the crash remained under investigation, and no additional details about how it happened had been released. The station's report said this is an ongoing investigation and that no other information had been provided at that time.
Williams Boulevard has been the site of fatal pedestrian crashes before. A report from NOLA.com described a 75-year-old man killed while trying to cross Williams Boulevard in Kenner, struck around 6:15 a.m. in the northbound lanes near Veterans Memorial Boulevard. In that earlier case, police had not released details about the cause of the crash or whether the driver would face charges.
Pattern of Pedestrian Deaths in the Parish
Fatal pedestrian crashes have also drawn scrutiny elsewhere in Jefferson Parish this year. Louisiana State Police said troopers with Troop B began investigating a fatal crash involving a pedestrian on U.S. Highway 90 Business near Garden Road on June 5, shortly after 9 p.m., which claimed the life of an unidentified male pedestrian. In that case, state police said impairment was not believed to be a factor, though the investigation continued.
No such determinations have been made public yet in Wednesday's Kenner crash. Investigators have not said whether speed, impairment, or any other factor contributed to the collision at Airline Drive and Williams Boulevard, and the identity of the man who died has not been released.
