An 8-year-old boy was seriously injured after being struck by a minivan in the Bronx yesterday. Police say that the driver of the 2010 Honda Odyssey was traveling south on Knox Place towards Gun Hill Road shortly before 6 p.m. when the boy ran into the street between two parked cars and was hit by the van. The child was transported to Jacobi Hospital, where he remains in critical condition.
The driver, a 32-year-old woman, remained on the scene. Witnesses told the Daily News that the woman was texting when she hit the boy. An NYPD spokeswoman said that no summonses were issued in the case, and that the child's injuries don't appear to be life-threatening. The investigation is ongoing.
The Daily News identifies the boy by his first name, Thomas:
He was hit pretty hard,” said the child’s 10-year-old friend Tyler Echevarria. “He did a full 360. I caught his head and brought him down slowly. It was really hard to see him like that.” Moments later, Thomas’ father ran out and cradled the child in his arms as an ambulance was called.
“Speak to me!” the man yelled at his son. “Speak to me!”
Thomas “was just making weird noises,” Tyler said.
“(Thomas) was in shock,” said Tyler’s father Michael Echevarria. “He was shaking. He was going in and out of consciousness. It was heartbreaking. (He’s) a little boy ... just 8 years old and very frail ... very, very small.”
