Fire captain who hit, killed pedestrian in Clovis identified. He was responding to a call
The captain driving a Clovis Fire Department truck when he struck and killed a pedestrian on the Fourth of July was a 23-year firefighter, according to information obtained by a public records request.
Fire Capt. Troy Coleman, 50, was the driver of a 2021 Ford F-250 about 9 p.m. July 4 that struck and killed 62-year-old Melchor Mendoza of Clovis, the California Highway Patrol confirmed after a formal public records request.
Coleman has worked for Clovis Fire Department for 23 years, according to Clovis City Attorney Scott Cross. Coleman has been a captain for more than 16 years, according to his LinkedIn page.
The CHP took over the investigation of the fatal crash at the request of Clovis police.
CHP routinely provides the names of people involved in fatal crashes within about 24 hours. Those names come out typically in a news release.
CHP did not release the name of the Clovis fire captain the day after the crash despite a request from The Bee.
Coleman’s name was not released until Thursday after formal Public Records Act requests were submitted on July 6 to CHP and July 20 to the city of Clovis.
Reached by email, Coleman declined to comment.
The fatal pedestrian crash
Mendoza was about 200 feet north of a crosswalk at Barstow and Clovis avenues when he began to cross the street, CHP said.
He was walking with a woman as they approached the curb of Clovis Avenue, where the woman stopped, CHP said, and Mendoza entered the roadway.
The marked fire department pickup truck was headed north with lights and sirens going as it responded to a Fourth of July-related call, CHP said.
Marked pickups are typically driven by a supervisor, like a captain or a battalion chief.
Mendoza stepped into the roadway, and the truck driver could not avoid a collision, CHP said. He died at the scene from his injuries.
A toxicology report on the man was still pending, Fresno County Coroner’s Office spokesperson Tony Botti said.
CHP has said they believe alcohol played a factor on the part of Mendoza.
The Clovis Fire Department declined comment, deferring to CHP.
