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CHICAGO (WLS) — A pedestrian was struck and killed in a Southwest Side crash early Saturday morning, Chicago police said.
The crash happened in the Gage Park neighborhood’s 3200 block of West 51st Street at about 4:16 a.m., police said.
Neighbors spoke to ABC7 but didn’t want to show their faces on camera. They said they awoke to a flurry of first responders.
“I couldn’t sleep and I just heard a [sound], really, really loud. I instantly came outside running,” a neighbor said.
A man was crossing the street when the driver of a Lincoln sedan struck him, CPD said. The victim was pronounced dead on the scene.
The medical examiner later identified the victim as 54-year-old. Luis Martinez Ortiz
“My neighbors were coming out and we were like, ‘what happened?’ We couldn’t see anything, we just saw a crash over there,” a neighbor said. “It’s very upsetting, very traumatic. I feel for everybody’s’ family.”
Police said the crash appears to be alcohol-related and placed the driver into custody.
“The driver just seemed nervous. He was very scared” the neighbor said “Accidents happen you know? But, he killed somebody.”
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Neighbors said that after the driver struck the man, he slammed into a nearby parked car and ultimately through the fence of a home near 51st and South Sawyer.
“I came outside and I found that the neighbor’s car and another car were in the fence. I mean, literally in the neighbor’s fence,” said a Gage Park resident.
This woman said drivers frequently race down 51st Street, adding that more needs to be done to encourage drivers to slow down.
“I think they need more cameras here, maybe speed bumps, something,” a neighbor said. “It’s bad enough that we live in the time we are living in, but this shouldn’t happen for a young life to be killed like this senselessly.”
The Chicago Police Department’s Major Accidents Unit is investigating the incident.
Police said the driver has not yet been charged.
The video in the player above is from a previous report.
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