6 Year Old Pontoon Beach Girl Killed After Being Struck by a Pickup
A 6 year old girl in Pontoon Beach was tragically killed Sunday afternoon after being run over by a pickup truck. Lyvia Roach had been riding her bike down the street when a pickup backed out of a nearby driveway and struck her. Her bike was found in the grass nearby. She had not been wearing a helmet and did suffer a head injury. According to the autopsy, her injuries seem to be the result of contact with a vehicle and not a fall, which one neighbor insisted as the cause of death. The accident happened just a few feet from a traffic sign that warned motorists to drive slowly because of playing children.
My thoughts and prayers are with the Roach family during this terrible tragedy. To lose someone so young is truly heartbreaking and I hope her family can find the strength to make it through this unfortunate period.
This tragedy is a reminder that if not handled with care, a motor vehicle can cause serious injury and death even operating at slow speeds for short distances. Drivers of all types of vehicles have a duty to keep a proper lookout before proceeding from any stopped position. That duty is even greater when there is known to be children present such as a neighborhood like Lyvia Roach’s or school zones. A 6-yr old child is not expected in our society to be able to recognize and understand the danger of being around cars and trucks of any size, so the extra burden is placed on the driver. The Roach family will likely need time to sort through and mourn the loss of their daughter and the last thing on their mind will be the little things that can be missed or mistakes made when in such an emotional state. Our best decisions are not made when we are in this state of mind.
When you or someone you love has been seriously injured or even killed in a car wreck or truck accident, the best thing to do is find someone who can step in and help take care of all of the details to determine exactly what went wrong and to make sure no important evidence is lost along the way. That leaves families like the Roaches free to take whatever time they need to cope with the tragic loss of their daughter. Knowing the right person to do just that can be difficult, but as with anything, the more you know, the better decision you can make. Before hiring any attorney in a case as important as this, the Roaches should take the time to request information to review in their own home so they are not pressured in a stranger’s office when they are in an emotional state of mind.
Then, if the books, reports and other materials provided make sense and the feeling is right, choose the right St. Louis accident attorney that fits your needs. If the attorney has no information other than a brochure to provide and just wants to have you sign on the dotted line, it is a huge red flag to look for someone else.
When a child is hurt, the situation is not only more traumatic but also more complicated. Since it is often hard to think clearly in these instances, it would be wise to know the mistakes that can be made after an accident before it even occurs. You can learn why you shouldn’t talk to the adjuster or sign any forms by requesting a free copy of my Missouri accident guide, “I Survived! The Crash Victim’s Guide to Dealing with the Aftermath.”
Tags: accident in pontoon beach, duty to keep a proper lookout, girl hit by pickup truck, Lyvia Roach, Missouri accident guide, st louis accident attorney
