Man dies after being hit by truck while skateboarding through east-central Fresno

A 27-year-old man died Friday night after he was hit by a truck while crossing the road against a traffic light in east-central Fresno, police said.

Fresno police Lt. Joe Gomez said a Toyota Tundra was driving eastbound on East Dakota Avenue just before 10 p.m. when it sped up to about 45 miles per hour to beat the yellow light at North Chestnut Diagonal. At the same time, the skateboarder was crossing Dakota illegally.

Gomez said the 25-year-old truck driver attempted to swerve to miss the skateboarder but couldn’t because of traffic in the westbound lane. He hit the man, who was pronounced dead at the scene.

The identity of the skateboarder was not released pending notification of his family. The truck driver was cooperative with police, Gomez said, and an investigation into the crash is ongoing.

This story was originally published August 8, 2015 at 3:19 PM with the headline "Man dies after being hit by truck while skateboarding through east-central Fresno."