Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2003 | 11:09 a.m.
A 10-year-old North Las Vegas boy in-line skating home from school Monday was struck and killed by a truck, police said.
The driver of the Pipes Paving semi-tractor with two trailers attached was returning to the company's parking lot when the accident occurred.
As he drove east down Gowan Road to turn south on Clayton Street, he apparently did not see the child, North Las Vegas Police spokesman Justin Roberts said.
The boy tried to stop or turn, but was unable to avoid the trailer's wheels, police said. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police investigators weren't sure whether the boy was skating on the sidewalk or in the roadway, Roberts said Monday night.
The 57-year-old driver was not aware that he had hit the child and continued driving down the street, but witnesses ran after him and he returned, Roberts said.
The intersection has a four-way stop sign.
"We believe this was a tragic accident," Roberts said. North Las Vegas Police are continuing to investigate the accident, but he said the truck driver is not expected to face charges.
The driver was interviewed by North Las Vegas Police detectives and will undergo a blood test.
"It is not believed that drugs or alcohol played any part in this accident," Roberts said.
The coroner's office had not released the name of the boy this morning.
A woman driving a white van south on Clayton Drive was at a stop sign about 3:30 p.m. and saw the child slide under the wheels, Roberts said.
Another group of children from nearby Richard Priest Elementary School west of Clayton were standing on the street corner, waiting for the truck to pass when the boy was run over.
North Las Vegas Police and Priest Elementary staff were working to counsel the students at the school at 4150 Fuselier Drive, Roberts said.
The campus was somber this morning as grief counselors talked with the boy's classmates, as well as students who witnessed the accident, school officials said. Several children who showed up for school this morning asked to go home after hearing the news.
"It's so close to Christmas, it is a terrible thing to happen, especially when it involves a child," Roberts said.
North Las Vegas Police photographed and measured the scene of the accident from above, trying to piece together details such as skid marks and other evidence.
A Quality Towing truck took the rig involved in the accident to scales to weigh it.
The tractor and its two trailers are estimated to weight 50,000 pounds empty, Roberts said. Fully loaded, the trailers could weigh between 75,000 pounds and 125,000 pounds.
Sun reporter
Emily Richmond contributed to this story.
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