A pedestrian walking on the Lovelock Highway south of Deer Trail Road Friday night was struck and killed by an automobile, reports the Churchill County Sheriff’s Office.
Sheriff Ben Trotter said the pedestrian has been identified as Ramon Figuero-Arroyo, 67, of Fallon. At about 9:41 p.m., Trotter said the CCSO received a call about a possible intoxicated man walking along the highway. Between the dispatch time and when a deputy arrived at the scene, Trotter said the deputy observed a vehicle pulled over with its flashers on.
“We contacted the driver of the pulled over vehicle who stated the vehicle had hit a pedestrian,” Trotter said.
The driver has been identified as Eric Bascio, 22, also of Fallon.
First responders, according to Trotter, found the man in a ditch between Hunter Park Way and Deer Trail on the west side of Lovelock Highway. The pedestrian was pronounced dead after life-saving efforts failed, Trotter added.
The Lovelock Highway was closed to through traffic at Coleman and Rice roads for several hours with Fallon Police Department assisting initially and then the Nevada Department of Transportation taking over traffic control points from the CCSO at about 11:30 p.m.
Trotter said the preliminary investigation indicates the pedestrian appeared to have been walking in the southbound lane of the roadway when a vehicle, also in the southbound lane, hit him. Trotter said an autopsy is awaiting a toxicology report. Identifying the pedestrian took some time.
“The pedestrian was unable to be identified due to no identification and not being immediately known to the first responders on scene,” Trotter said.
Since the incident occurred on a federal highway, the NHP is investigating the accident. The Nevada Highway Patrol responded with their Major Accident Investigation Team (MAIT) to handle the accident.