Pedestrian dies after being hit by car while trying to cross road in Galleria area, HPD says

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- An investigation is underway after a pedestrian crossing the street was hit by a car in the Galleria area on Wednesday morning. The man later died at the hospital, according to police.

Houston police said a vehicle traveling eastbound struck a pedestrian who was trying to cross Westheimer Road from the north to the south at Sage Road around 7:30 a.m.

The impact caused the pedestrian to be thrown into a second vehicle that was stopped at the intersection, waiting to make a turn, according to HPD.

When officers arrived, witnesses at the scene were performing CPR on the man who was struck. Police initially said the man was taken to the hospital in "very critical condition," but in a later update, they said he died at the hospital.

Investigators said the driver who struck the pedestrian initially left the scene and traveled down the street to turn around, but then returned to the scene and identified themselves to police as the driver involved.

The driver was being interviewed by investigators. Police were working to determine if the driver was intoxicated and who was at fault. Investigators were also looking at surveillance video and talking to witnesses.

HPD's Vehicular Crimes Division is conducting the investigation. Meanwhile, the intersection was closed and drivers were asked to avoid the area and use alternate routes.

Officials said it wasn't immediately clear if the pedestrian was in the crosswalk during the crash.

At the scene, an ABC13 crew spotted a car honking its horn and speeding off as HPD tried to direct traffic.

Cmdr. Zachary Becker said that driver was pulled over nearby and detained.

"We really hope we can get people's cooperation, especially when we are investigating these kind of incidents," Becker said.

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