An Ocala man was killed after a driver veered off a local roadway and struck him while he was working on a truck, marking the third pedestrian fatality in Marion County in the past four days and the second in which the driver fled the scene.
The fatal accident occurred on Tuesday, October 28, on SW 27th Circle, just north of SW 137th Loop in Marion Oaks. According to a report from the Florida Highway Patrol, a gray or silver Jeep Cherokee was seen traveling southbound on SW 27th Circle at around 7:30 p.m.
At the same time, a 45-year-old man and a 76-year-old man, both from Ocala, were working on a disabled dump truck that was parked and unoccupied on the west grass shoulder of the roadway.
As the vehicle approached the pedestrians, the driver failed to negotiate a left-hand curve and exited the roadway. As a result, the vehicle entered the west shoulder and struck the 45-year-old man with its right side.
The vehicle then struck the 76-year-old man, causing him to be propelled south and collide with a different sport utility vehicle that was also parked and unoccupied on the west shoulder.
Both pedestrians were transported to a local hospital, where the 76-year-old man was pronounced deceased.
According to FHP, the driver of the vehicle involved in the accident initially pulled over before fleeing the scene of the crash. The vehicle traveled south on SW 27th Circle and turned right onto SW 137th Loop.
The hit-and-run suspect vehicle was described by a witness as being a gray or silver Jeep Cherokee. The vehicle would have damage to its front right and grille sections.
Anyone with information about the vehicle or driver involved in this fatal hit-and-run accident is asked to contact Corporal Justin Bard at 352-512-6643.
The fatal accident marks the third pedestrian death on a Marion County roadway in just the past four days.