On Monday, 84-year-old Joao Amaral of New Bedford was struck by an oil truck while in the crosswalk on the corner of Purchase and Hillman streets. He was in serious condition on Tuesday at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.
The New Bedford Police Department reported that Amaral was operating his motorized wheelchair on Purchase Street near the curb when he was struck. Investigators believe he was pushed about 30 feet and then run over by the oil truck. Police have identified the driver of the truck, owned by the Star Oil Co. of New Bedford, as John Duarte, 74, of Acushnet.
The incident in New Bedford was the latest in a series of six pedestrian accidents in the town in 2010 and the second involving a wheelchair-bound person in the last few months. On Oct. 29, 2010, a 57-year-old man died after he was hit in his wheelchair at Route 6 and Pleasant Street.
Source:
Wheelchair accident victim is in serious condition, South Coast Today, January 12, 2011