A Phoenix pedestrian accident has critically injured a city employee who had pulled over to the side of the road to watch the funeral procession of a police officer killed in the line of duty, the Arizona Republic reported.
The Phoenix Street Department electrician suffered severe brain injuries but is showing signs of emerging from a coma. A single father of an 8-year-old girl, the man is credited with pushing a coworker out of the path of an oncoming vehicle. The men had set up their bucket trucks on the south side of the Loop 101 near Seventh Street. They had pulled onto the shoulder of the freeway to salute the funeral procession of Phoenix Police Officer Travis Murphy. A 20-year-old woman lost control of her car and slammed into the trucks as traffic slowed in front of her, according to the Arizona Department of Public Safety.
The woman was cited for failure to control speed to avoid a collision.
Phoenix injury attorneys frequently handle cases involving an accident that happened due to stopped traffic in the roadway. Motorists need to use extra caution whenever they are approaching a construction zone, an area where police emergency vehicles or utility workers have activated emergency lights, or even a parade or funeral procession. Accidents can easily result when such circumstance interrupt the normal flow of traffic or disrupt normal driving rules.
The 34-year-old man is in critical condition at John C. Lincoln North Mountain Hospital. His family is praying for his recovery and seeking support to help pay medical bills.
Authorities say the man spotted the vehicle veering toward a group of city workers and jumped to help push a co-worker out of the way. The crash turned one of the trucks around and slammed the victim into another truck.
It is the second time the man has helped save someone in an auto accident. His father reports the victim was a high school baseball star in California when he injured his pitching arm while helping to save the life of a buddy in a rollover accident.