A Concord High School senior died from injuries suffered in a hit-and-run accident on a Highway 4 on-ramp this week.
Authorities identified the teen as Joseph Barratt III, 18.
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Police have identified a person and vehicle of interest in the accident that left pedestrian Barratt laying on the Port Chicago on-ramp heading eastbound to Highway 4. It’s not known who found Barratt, at about 9:15 p.m.
Paramedics rushed him to John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek where hospital personnel pronounced him dead.
Police have also not said why Barratt appeared to be on the on-ramp. They also have not given any information about the possible suspect.
The high school said in a statement that they would have grief counselors on staff for the students when school reopens on Monday. The school had a four-day weekend in honor of President’s Day.
Authorities ask anyone with information to call the California Highway Patrol’s Contra Costa office, 925-646-4980.
In California alone, there were 858 pedestrian fatalities in 2017, the highest in the US that year.
In 2017, nearly 6,000 pedestrians died in traffic accidents, and on average, that is one pedestrian every 88 minutes, or more than 16 people a day. Most of the pedestrian fatalities, 73 percent, did not occur at intersections, and most happened in the dark. Winter evenings seem to be one of the deadliest times for pedestrians. More than one-third of the deaths occurred in December, January and February, in a given year, between 6 p.m. and 8:59 p.m.