A man was killed late Friday night after being struck by a car while lying in the roadway on North Loop in El Paso's Lower Valley, and police are still asking the public for help piecing together what happened. The crash marks the city's 57th traffic fatality of 2026, compared with 56 recorded at the same point in 2025.
According to KTSM, the crash happened at about 10:37 p.m. on Friday in the 9000 block of North Loop. Police said a 2010 Chevrolet Equinox, driven eastbound by 60-year-old Joaquin Velez Velasco, struck the pedestrian, who was lying in the road at the time. A Yahoo-published KTSM report, however, placed the crash at North Loop and Coventry near Zaragoza.
The pedestrian died at the scene, according to Telemundo 48 El Paso, which reported that authorities had not yet released the man's identity. As KFOX reported, investigators believe the man was lying on the roadway when the crash occurred. The investigation remains ongoing, the station's report notes.
Police Still Seeking Information
The El Paso Police Department has asked anyone with information about the crash to come forward. Per the same account, people can call the department's non-emergency line at 915-832-4400 or reach Crime Stoppers of El Paso at 915-566-8477 to remain anonymous.
The Lower Valley saw more than one serious crash that night. Earlier on Friday, another collision at Alameda and Little Flower injured two people, one of them seriously, according to a Yahoo-published report.
A Stretch of Road With a Troubled History
North Loop Drive has been the site of fatal pedestrian crashes before. In 2021, a pedestrian died after being struck by a car on North Loop Drive in the Lower Valley, according to the El Paso Times. And in March 2025, police said an eastbound vehicle struck pedestrian Jesus Fernando Perez on North Loop Drive and fled the scene; Perez later died at University Medical Center of El Paso, the same outlet reported separately.
Traffic Deaths Trending Down Citywide
Despite Friday's fatality, El Paso's broader traffic safety numbers have been improving. A separate report from KFOX on the city's Vision Zero update found that roadway fatalities fell 36.1% from 2023 to 2025, with 53 roadway deaths recorded in 2025. The same report said fatalities dropped nearly 24.3% from 2024 to 2025 alone, compared with a 6.7% decline nationally, and that the city's pedestrian fatality rate from 2020 through 2024 fell to 2.33 deaths per 100,000 residents — more than 20% lower than the 2015-19 period.
