Boy hit by city truck undergoes more surgery
Third-grader told father: ‘Tell them to save my legs’
A 9-year-old Spokane boy was fighting for his life Thursday a day after he was hit by a city dump truck.
Zachary Donovan, a third-grader at Hutton Elementary, was riding his non-motorized scooter when he was struck by the Spokane truck, said Mary King, Zachary’s great-aunt.
King said that Donovan suffered internal bleeding and that doctors removed one of his kidneys.
He also suffered a crushed pelvis, she said.
He was listed in critical condition Thursday evening at Sacred Heart Medical Center.
The city truck was working with a street sweeper near D Street and North Loop Avenue, in the Finch Arboretum area, about 2 p.m. when the incident occurred, police reported.
Spokane police Officer Jennifer DeRuwe said the crash remains under investigation.
Zachary’s father, Dan Donovan, was in the family’s yard and saw the truck hit his son, King said.
“The truck ran over him backwards and then forwards,” King said. “He just knew his son was dead.”
But Zachary survived and was conscious long enough, King said, for his father to reach him and hear Zachary say: “Tell them to save my legs so that I can play and run and ride my bike.”
Zachary underwent more surgery Thursday afternoon to restore blood flow to one of his legs, King said.
“He’s just a tough little guy, and he has just a wonderful spirit for life,” she said.
King said Zachary was wearing a helmet, knee pads and other safety gear. He did not appear to have suffered head injuries, she said.
Police and city officials are withholding the identity of the city employee driving the truck, who remains on duty.. Alcohol or drugs did not appear to be a factor, DeRuwe said.
The city’s human resources director, Dave Chandler, said the employee was given an alcohol and drug test, which is standard procedure after a serious traffic incident.
Three or four city street crews work to clean the streets each day, said Andy Schenk, street department operations engineer.
Each crew has a dump truck driver, who collects larger trash such as hubcaps and ensures that catch basins don’t become blocked. When full, the street sweeper dumps its debris into the truck.
“Our thoughts and prayers and hearts go out to the family and the driver,” Schenk said. “It’s a rough time for everybody.”