Sunny Isles Beach asks state to review crosswalk after 11-year-old badly hurt in crash
An 11-year-old boy was critically injured Wednesday night after a car ran into him as he tried to cross a Sunny Isles Beach street on a skateboard.
Now city leaders are asking the Florida Department of Transportation to take another look at the pedestrian walkway that crosses Sunny Isles Beach Boulevard/ State Road 826 and make sure it is safe.
“This is the worst thing that has happened there,” said City Manager Chris Russo, saying there has been a few minor incidents in the past. “We are hoping they can take a closer look.”
The pedestrian walkway links Sunny Isles Beach’s Gateway Park with many residential buildings. There is a traffic light there so that a pedestrian can cross safely. A pedestrian pushes the button and the traffic light turns to red for cars and green for pedestrians.
In a letter sent to Secretary of the Florida Department of Transportation James Wolfe Thursday, Sen. Jason Pizzo asked FDOT to consider making improvements to the crossing.
“I write to respectfully request an immediate inquiry into traffic/pedestrian incidents (or more appropriately, tragedies) that seem to be occurring with greater regularity in Sunny Isles Beach,” he said. “In full transparency, my own 14-year-old twin sons frequent the roadway/crosswalks in Sunny Isles Beach, and so I join as much as a father and resident, as I do a state senator in this request.”
Sunny Isles Beach Police Chief Dwight Snyder said the city has done a lot of outreach for pedestrian safety.
“We take traffic safety so seriously,” he said. “We have so many pedestrians out and walking and that’s what we want.”
As for Wednesday’s incident, Miami-Dade police said the boy was struck by a car as he crossed the street. According to policy, Miami-Dade is handling the incident because of the severity of the boy’s injuries.
Vice Mayor Larisa Svechin said Thursday that the boy had a green light as he crossed on a skateboard with his step father and sister. The car went through the red light, she said based on information from the police chief. Police did not confirm this and only said that driver stayed on the scene. The driver was not immediately charged, but the investigation continues.
The Chabad Russian Center of South Florida was holding a prayer service via Zoom Thursday night.
Svechin described the boy, who is a sixth grader at Norman S. Edelcup Sunny Isles Beach K-8, as a “sweet kid who plays soccer.”
“We just really hopes he pulls through,” she said.
This story was originally published February 11, 2021 at 5:54 PM.
