The Daytona Beach Police Department (DBPD) is actively investigating a fatal collision between a pedestrian and a vehicle.
Officers arrived at the 600 block of South Ridgewood Avenue/U.S. 1 (near Cedar Street) soon after emergency dispatchers received multiple calls from bystanders around 5:46 p.m. yesterday (July 27, 2020).
First responders found a 69-year-old Daytona Beach woman unconscious and lying on the ground on the east side of Ridgewood. Paramedics took her from the scene as a trauma alert to Halifax Health Medical Center, where she underwent surgery for various serious injuries. She passed away later that evening.
Members of DBPD’s Traffic Homicide Investigation (THI) Unit arrived on scene soon after the 911 calls came in to process the scene for evidence and speak to witnesses about what happened.
Investigators believe a red 2013 four-door Lincoln MKZ was traveling north on Ridgewood in the right-hand lane under heavy rain when the front of the vehicle hit the woman as she attempted to cross Ridgewood on foot from west to east.
The driver of the Lincoln – a 36-year-old Daytona Beach man – immediately stopped and remained on scene. He did not report any injuries and left the scene in his vehicle after speaking with investigators.
No other people were in the Lincoln at the time of the collision and no other vehicles or people are believed to have been involved.
The driver of the Lincoln told investigators he was traveling around 20 to 25 miles per hour due to the heavy rain diminishing visibility at the time of the collision and he did not see the woman until she was directly in front of the vehicle.
The area where the woman was attempting to cross U.S. 1 is not a marked crosswalk.
Charges are not pending against the driver currently. A final determination will be made once the investigation is complete.