Man pinned beneath truck in auto-pedestrian collision

The shaky video circulating online last Saturday showed the distressing and shocking sight of a man pinned beneath a pickup truck whose hood appeared to be crumpled, while a trail of blood was draining toward the side of the road.

It was later learned from police that the incident was an auto-pedestrian collision that happened over the weekend along Middle Road in Puerto Rico, and that the victim, who was rushed to the Commonwealth Health Center, had sustained massive injuries.

According to a report from the Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services, DFEMS was called to respond to the auto-pedestrian collision in the early hours of Saturday morning. At the scene DFEMS found the individual, who remains unidentified, under the Toyota Tacoma truck that had hit him.

The vehicle’s driver, who also remains unidentified, told DFEMS that he did not see the pedestrian because it was dark. The victim in the video appeared to be wearing dark-colored clothes.

DFEMS officers saw that the individual was pinned face down under the front end of the vehicle and was still breathing. The DFEMS officers slightly lifted the front of the pickup truck while another put the vehicle on reverse to free the pedestrian.

After that, a spine board was positioned beside the man and DFEMS officers carefully rolled him onto the stretcher and immobilized him for transportation to the CHC Emergency Room.

DFEMS said the pedestrian sustained a laceration/puncture to the back of his head, abrasions on his lower back, deformity to the right ankle, abrasions on his forehead, a lacerated chin, abrasions on his left arm, and abrasions on both knees.

According to DFEMS, the man was responsive at the scene. However, as of yesterday, Saipan Tribune has yet to confirm the status of the victim.

Saipan Tribune tried to obtain more information from Department of Public Safety spokesperson Dre Pangelinan but, as of 5pm press time on Sunday, Pangelinan has yet to issue a report of the incident.

Based on photos and videos circulating in various social media platforms, the man was seen pinned under a red Toyota Tacoma, near Island Apparel and Pacific Trading Co. in Puerto Rico. It showed the man lying on the ground surrounded by what seemed to be blood. The vehicle where he was under had a huge dent on the hood, with the hood popping off the vehicle. The front bumper of the vehicle also seemed to have detached from the car.

At the scene later that day, Saipan Tribune observed markings made by police on the ground along Middle Road, Puerto Rico that seem to indicate the position the vehicle was found in, tire marks in the grass, and some remnants of blood from the accident.