NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (WAVY) — One man is dead and another has been hospitalized with life-threatening injuries after an SUV slammed into them.
Newport News Police officials say they were dispatched to an auto-pedestrian crash near the intersection of Wickham Avenue and 18th Street around 5:42 p.m., Tuesday.
When crews arrived they found an adult man lying dead in the road. Police identified the victim the following Monday as 56-year-old Joseph Upchurch, from Newport News.
Another man was taken to the hospital suffering life-threatening injuries.
Police say a preliminary investigation revealed the first man was lying in the roadway when the second male stopped to render aid.
10 On Your Side spoke with a woman who witnessed the accident. She said one of the men hit was a Good Samaritan who had stopped to help the other person involved.
Meme Smith said she’s traumatized by what happened right in front of her.
“I’m just still shaken up, still shaken up as we speak now. I never seen nothing like this in my life,” she said.
Smith said she was driving on Wickam Avenue when she saw a person lying in the road and another man standing over him, on the phone. She pulled over while the man called 911.
“I had turned my flashers on and next thing I know, a truck came down the street and hit both of them,” Smith said.
Police say the driver of the SUV was unaware of the individuals in the roadway and struck them both.
“I’m screaming and hollering and letting them know that he got bodies up under his truck,” Smith said. “He didn’t understand what I was saying. I said ‘there’s bodies up under your car’ and he was like ‘what?’ He didn’t understand what I was saying.”
Smith said the SUV had to be lifted to get to the victims. One man died at the scene while the other was rushed to the hospital. Officers also examined a bicycle that was in the road.
“To the best of my knowledge, it does not appear that the bicycle was struck but we don’t know which individual was riding the bicycle or how it was involved,” said Sarah Ketchum, public information officer for the department.
It’s not clear if the driver was released or taken in for questioning, but police say no charges have been filed.
There is no further information to release at this time and the investigation remains ongoing.