ME works to ID woman hit, killed by 18-wheeler on near North Side street

Victim found in 900 block of San Francisco Street

SAN ANTONIO – The Bexar County Medical Examiner's Office is working to positively identify a woman who was hit and killed by an 18-wheeler on a neighborhood street on the city's near North Side.

A preliminary police report said the 50-year-old woman was found lying in the middle of San Francisco Street between Grant Avenue and Blanco Road around 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Investigators later determined that she had been hit and run over by a big rig, the report said. The victim died at the scene.

At some point after the incident, police spoke with the truck driver, but didn't charge him with any crime. Police said the cause of the crash is still being investigated.

Jose Garza, who lives near the scene, also wondered how the fatality could have happened.

"I had seen her earlier in the day walking. She did have problems walking," he said, speaking of the woman who he didn't know.

Garza said when he saw her, the woman was using a walker and struggling to navigate the uneven sidewalks across from his home.

Somehow, she later ended up in the street in front of the big rig, police said.

"She probably was in the street, because, I'm thinking, the sidewalks from the easements, it would be hard for her to walk straight," Garza speculated.

Garza said the crash has him worrying about the safety of his children, who often visit relatives on the other side of the street.

"They're not crossing the street anymore, anytime soon, without a parent's supervision," Garza said.

The street is located in the middle of a residential area, giving the appearance of one that would be quiet with relatively slow-moving traffic. 

But Garza said most of the time traffic moves fast, calling the road, which provides access to Interstate 10, an "expressway to the expressway."

"This street leads to the access road," he said. "This is one of the only streets that leads to the access ... out of this whole neighborhood."

While Garza said it's not unusual to see cars speeding through the area, investigators have not given any indication that speed was a factor in the fatal crash.

The San Antonio Police Department Traffic Investigation Division is trying to determine what happened.


About the Author:

Katrina Webber joined KSAT 12 in December 2009. She reports for Good Morning San Antonio. Katrina was born and raised in Queens, NY, but after living in Gulf Coast states for the past decade, she feels right at home in Texas. It's not unusual to find her singing karaoke or leading a song with her church choir when she's not on-air.