A Winnipeg woman who came across an unconscious man — who later died in hospital and city police say was the victim of a hit and run — wonders why the vehicle that hit him fled the scene.
Cindy Myskiw said she was on the way home from her work in the film industry early Thursday, driving on Main Street near Mayfair Avenue when she saw something in the middle of the road.
As she got closer, Myskiw and a friend realized it was a person, so they pulled over and immediately called 911.
“I was like ‘what the heck happened,’ it was a shock,” she said.
Myskiw said she waited about 15 minutes for first responders to arrive but that it felt like forever until they got there.
In the meantime, she said she turned on the flashlight on her phone and stood guarding the unconscious man and waved traffic away. Myskiw said she wasn’t scared standing in the intersection, but just didn’t want anyone else to hit him.
“There was a garbage truck, two buses and probably 10 vehicles that went passed us — and they do not come slow over that bridge,” she said.
Winnipeg police say a man was walking across Main — on a small stretch also known as Queen Elizabeth Way — when he fell. As he was trying to get up, he was hit by a southbound vehicle which fled the scene, police said.
Emergency crews were called to the area, just across the Assiniboine River from The Forks, around 3:30 a.m. Thursday.
He was rushed to hospital in critical condition where he later died, police said in a news release.
Myskiw wants to know why whoever hit the man fled the scene.
“How can anyone hit somebody and not stop,” said Myskiw. “I know if I even bumped somebody on a crosswalk or something, if they tapped my car I would be like jumping out of my car [saying] ‘are you OK, can I take you to the hospital or something?'”
“You ran somebody over and did not stop, either you have no conscience, you’re drunk or you’re on something,” she said. “Or you’re just scared I guess.”
Meanwhile, Winnipeg police had no updates Friday. The investigation continues, spokesperson Const. Pat Saydak said.
Anyone with information, including video and dashcam footage, is asked to contact investigators at 204-986-7085.
Anonymous tips can also be made through Crime Stoppers at 204-786-8477 (TIPS) or online.