Woman falls, killed by bus

Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2003 | 9:26 a.m.

A pedestrian was killed Tuesday when she fell under the wheels of a Citizens Area Transit bus on Las Vegas Boulevard near Charleston Boulevard.

The double-length bus was about to make its 3 p.m. stop just south of Charleston when the 41-year-old Henderson woman fell in front of it and was dragged under, Metro Police Detective Doug Nutton said.

Nutton said the accident was caused by pedestrian error and said that the bus driver, a 10-year CAT veteran, did not complain of any mechanical problems.

The driver was not cited.

One witness said the woman appeared impaired before the accident.

Greg Welsh said he could see the woman amid a group of people from his nearby Storage One office.

"About seven of them were drunk and partying," Welsh said. "This one was so drunk she couldn't even walk."

He said the woman was "literally rolling around on the ground" and had to be assisted by one of her friends.

Officials did not release the woman's name pending notification of family members.

It was the second pedestrian fatality involving a CAT bus this year. A bus driver was cited after he ran a red light and struck an elderly man at Desert Inn and Pecos roads on Jan. 27.

The driver in that incident told police the brakes on the bus failed, but the brakes were checked and found to be in good working condition, police said.