A child died after being hit by a vehicle that drove onto a sidewalk in West Valley City late Wednesday night, authorities said.
Police are searching for the suspect vehicle.
According to initial information provided by Sgt. John Pittman with the West Valley City Police Department, officers were dispatched to the area of 4200 South and 4000 West just after 11:30 p.m., where an 11-year-old boy had been struck by a vehicle.
An update posted to WVCPD's social media account later Thursday morning stated the boy was out walking with his mother at the time. The two were on the sidewalk when a vehicle drove off the road and hit the child.
"The driver of the vehicle did not stop," police stated.
Paramedics transported the boy to the hospital, where died approximately an hour later.
Authorities are searching for a suspect driving a light-colored truck, possibly gray or silver, with front-end damage. They said the suspect's vehicle may be a Toyota Tacoma or a similar-looking pickup truck.
WVCPD initially reported the involved vehicle was dark-colored.
“I heard sirens in my room from down here all the way up there,” resident Flor Martinez said.
And then she found out a boy had been hit and killed.
“It’s a horrible thing to go through,” Martinez said. “And to imagine a 12-, 11-year-old kid just like that. It’s a nightmare. I can’t imagine how the mother must feel.”
As a mother herself, Martinez has long worried about walking on the road.
“I have my daughter and I’m terrified every day when we’re outside. You never know what could happen,” she said.
Martinez used to walk on the street with her own mother when she was a child.
“As things got worse and it got more dangerous at night we couldn’t even enjoy our evening walks anymore," she said. "I’ve had incidents where it was so close to me I had to nearly jump out of the way."
Just a couple months ago, Martinez said a truck came from across the street and right across their lawn, almost hitting their neighbors house. It’s to the point where even going to her mailbox by the street makes her anxious.
“It’s terrifying having a child and not even being able to spend our time in the yard,” Martinez said.
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Authorities are continuing to gather all the evidence at the scene, and the investigation is ongoing.
Anyone with information is urged to call West Valley City police at 801-840-4000.
Further details about the crash have not yet been released.