Driver kills Rathdrum woman

A 47-year-old woman was killed by a hit-and-run driver early Wednesday while walking along the shoulder of state Highway 53 in Rathdrum, police said.

Rathdrum police Lt. Alex Carrington said Deborah McBride was seen leaving the Shady Bar shortly after midnight, apparently to walk home.

Police believe she was struck from behind by a tall vehicle – such as an SUV, pickup or van – traveling at high speed, Carrington said.

“It was pretty ferocious impact” that threw McBride away from the highway, he said.

McBride’s body was discovered at dawn. A woman going to work thought there was a scarecrow along the road and stopped to take a closer look.

“She came to the office this morning just shaking,” Carrington said.

McBride was walking east on the south shoulder of Highway 53, which serves as a main east-west street through Rathdrum.

She was in a section of road between the Conoco gas station and minimart and the Shady Bar, police said.

She was near the pedestrian tunnel under the railroad tracks, an indication she was walking home, Carrington said.

The Idaho State Police are leading the investigation.

Carrington said anyone with information is asked to call the ISP at (208) 772-8485 or Rathdrum police (208) 687-0711.

Carrington said it is almost certain that the vehicle that hit McBride, who lived in Rathdrum about a year, suffered front-end damage.