CLAY COUNTY, Fla. — A toddler is seriously hurt after being hit by a SUV while trying to cross Blanding Boulevard Thursday night, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
Troopers said the 3-year-old Orange Park boy was walking alone, just before 9 p.m., when he walked in front of a SUV being driven north on Blanding Boulevard at Parkridge Drive.
Troopers said the collision caused the child to be thrown forward and he landed near a sidewalk.
Action News Jax obtained new surveillance video from an auto repair shop across the street. It’s hard to see since it’s so far away ‚but there’s a SUV in the video that hits its breaks and comes to a complete stop.
Five to 10 minutes later, flashing lights from the Clay County Fire Rescue and Clay County Sheriff’s Office can be seen on scene.
The 23-year-old driver of the SUV immediately stopped to help and called authorities, the FHP report stated. First responders took the child to Wolfson’s Children’s Hospital. He was in serious condition at last check.
E.J. Dieva owns a pizza shop a half mile from where the crash happened. “There’s always pedestrian problems crossing Blanding and then if you put a 3-year-old in there unattended. Wow,” Dieva said.
As a parent, Dieva told Action News Jax reporter Alicia Tarancon, it hits close to home and he hopes the parents face charges.
“Devastating, you don’t know until you have a child and then something like this happens. At that age, the parents are responsible for the well-being of the child and someone needs to be held accountable,” he said.
Action News Jax did reach out to the Clay County Sheriff’s Office on if the parents could be facing any charges.
They told us it’s too early in the investigation. Right now, they’re looking into the circumstances surrounding why that child was left alone.
Cox Media Group
