The Antelope Valley Times

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Pedestrian killed in Palmdale crash Friday

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PALMDALE – A 57-year-old Lancaster man walking in the middle of the street was struck and killed by a pickup truck early this morning, authorities said.

The fatal traffic collision occurred around 4:40 a.m. Friday on Avenue M (also known as Columbia Way), near the intersection of 5th Street East in Palmdale, according to detective Jeff Perkins of the Palmdale Sheriff’s Station.

A preliminary investigation revealed that 29-year-old Armando Calderon was driving a 2005 GMC/2500 HD pick-up truck traveling eastbound on Avenue M when he struck a pedestrian who was walking in the middle of the east bound lanes, Perkins stated.

The pedestrian was pronounced dead at the scene by Los Angeles County Fire Department personnel.   His name has been withheld pending notification of next of kin.

Calderon did not report any injuries from the collision, Perkins stated.

Avenue M was closed to routine traffic, between Division Street and 10th Street East, until approximately 8:30 a.m., while the incident was being investigated.

This fatal collision is still under investigation by the Palmdale Sheriff’s Station Traffic Unit.

UPDATED 5/28/13 @ 1:30 pm: The deceased has been identified as Hipolito Rodriguez Franco, according to the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office.  Franco was visiting from Mexico at the time of the fatal collision, according to officials from the County Coroner’s Office.

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30 comments for "Pedestrian killed in Palmdale crash Friday"

  1. Could’ve been this guy was hammered at one of the finer establishments in town, Reubens. Had a nap in the weeds, and when he woke up, couldn’t find the head, or his car!

  2. Nacy p … Sure seems you don’t know how ave m looks like at 4 in the morning. You sure do have many irrelevant comments to make..! And moon Luna very dumb story. If you don’t know how things when Down then you shouldn’t say anything. You don’t know how the driver might be feeling.

    • hmmm. Thanks for the input. Maybe I don’t know what Ave M looks like at 4 in the AM. I hope I never know what it looks like to hit and kill someone with my truck when I should have seen the person in my headlights or early dawn hours.

      • Well pray that it never happens. Because you never know what might happen tommomorow!!

      • Listen stupid. This was an unfortunate accident. My brother-in-law happend to be the one driving. He is devastated by what happend. Noone wakes up saying, “[removed] on my way to work today, I’m just going to hit and kill someone” For everyone’s information, my brother in law was not speeding, he was actually driving 10 miles under the speed limit. Unfortunately the gentleman came out of nowhere so by the time he saw him, it was too late. He swerved trying to avoid him but it was literally too late. The lighting is very poor and as far as headlights go, they light up what’s in front of you not all the way around. Ignorant. Pray that you never find yourself in a similar situation.

        • If you can call me stupid, I guess I can call you [removed].
          Yes it was an unfortunate accident, an avoidable unfortunate accident. Driving any place at that time of morning is dangerous. Especially if someone is tired. It must have been a frightening experience.

  4. Let’s just say; the guy walking in the middle of the street at 0430 just left his girlfriends house, BUT his girlfriend is the guys wife that was driving the car in which he was coming home early from his graveyard shift. caught the guy leaving his house, followed him and when he saw him crossing the street he saw the opening to run his ass down.

  5. Walking in the middle of the street at 4:30 a.m. is potentially lethal anywhere. I see A lot of irrational stuff in Lancaster daily. R.I.P. to the deceased.

  6. Yes, the speed limit is 60mph along M where this occurred but unfortunately it is just a suggestion. Drivers routinely exceed this by 10-20mph. It is like a race track sometimes. So yes, possible excessive speed, combined with time of day and near zero lighting made for a tragic situation for that young man. Wrong place at the wrong time.

    • If the sign says SPEED LIMIT that that is the LIMIT, if it just say SPEED then it is a suggested speed.

  7. I walk all the time, and always use crosswalks. I have also been almost hit many many times. I will be almost to the curb and cars are turning, like waiting a few more seconds is going to hurt. It pissed me off!

  8. Anybody who knows ave m at that location knows how it is and to be walkin down the middle of the street at that time in the dark I’m sure the driver didnt see him till it was to late

  9. So…if the guy was walking down the middle of the street…regardless of whether he SHOULD have been there, why did the guy hit him instead of slowing down, changing lanes, uhhhh. Who hits someone just because they can??? 4:40, streets lights are on…I don’t get it. Freakin zombies.

    • wow..people are something else, you really don’t understand why the guy got hit, its 4.30 in the morning, its dark out, the speed limit 60 mph and the guy is in the middle of the street, and you don’t get it, really?

      • Additionally, the street lights provide very little illumination in this area, if any at all.

          • No headlights on the truck??? People usually drive with “brights” on if there are no street lights. I think the driver hit him on purpose, but would have a hard time proving it.

          • Well, just to let y’all know. at 0425 I almost ran over this guy. it was a full moon. there are no street lights in this area and the fool was wearing all black clothing. I had to swerve to miss him as he was not visible until i was right there.

            and people who drive with their brights on with on-coming traffic need to go re-take their driving tests.

      • No Tommy and friends, I really don’t get it. 2 lanes going each direction…man walking down the middle of the street. Assuming the driver was looking at what was infront of his car, and he had his headlights on… There is no reason he should have hit someone and killed them.
        Just because it’s dark and the speed limit is 60mph, doesn’t mean you drive without caution.

    • The nancy p method, change lanes prior to crashing. We will teach it in schools and there will never be another accident as long as this method is followed. Lol

      • I think it is taught in drivers education class. If there is an obstruction in the road, slow down and go around it.
        Why didn’t the driver slow down and yell something to the walker like, “dude, get out of the road, I almost ran over you.” Oh, I know why….., he did run over him.

  10. It seems kind of wrong to release the drivers name if he hasn’t been found at fault yet. Legal, I’m sure, but still wrong.

  11. here in Lancaster so many people just walk across main streets and do not even look .. like they don’t know what crosswalks are and just expect all the traffic to stop for them..