Woman struck, killed by car in downtown Fresno — 1st of two major collisions on rainy streets

A woman crossing the street near St. John’s Cathedral in downtown Fresno was struck and killed by a pickup truck early Wednesday in rainy conditions.

The fatal collision took place just after 7 a.m. at Mariposa and R streets, and was the first of two major crashes involving pedestrians on rain-slick streets, said Fresno police Sgt. Jeff La Blue. The second crash took place on East Jensen and North East avenues.

La Blue described the victim of the first incident as a middle-aged woman. The driver of the pickup stopped and was cooperative with police. Other drivers rendered aid at the scene and the victim died after she was rushed to nearby Community Regional Medical Center.

In the Jensen incident, La Blue said a shopping cart was lodged under the vehicle that struck the victim, but additional details were not immediately available.

There was also a multi-car collision on Highway 99 at Clinton Avenue that caused the southbound lanes to be closed while crews cleaned up.

This story was originally published March 11, 2020 at 9:20 AM.