ANAHEIM -- A 9-year-old boy struck and killed while riding his bicycle in Anaheim has been identified.
Nicholas Vela, a student at Alexander J. Stoddard Elementary School, died Thursday after being hit by a pickup truck, according to the coroner's office.
A crisis team was expected to be at the school Friday to help students cope with the loss.
Vela was trying to cross the street in the area of Orangewood Avenue and Loara Street around 2:30 p.m. Thursday when he was hit by a raised Ford F-150 pickup, according to Anaheim Sgt. Rick Martinez.
The truck had apparently stopped at a stop sign on Orangewood, possibly giving the boy the impression that the driver would remain stopped, Martinez said.
The unidentified truck driver told police he never saw the boy on the bicycle. Martinez said it's possible the height of the truck obscured the driver's vision.
It's believed Vela was wearing a helmet.
The boy was rushed to UCI Medical Center in Orange in critical condition, but was pronounced dead a short time later.
No tickets or citations have been issued in the crash.
Nicholas Vela, a student at Alexander J. Stoddard Elementary School, died Thursday after being hit by a pickup truck, according to the coroner's office.
A crisis team was expected to be at the school Friday to help students cope with the loss.
Vela was trying to cross the street in the area of Orangewood Avenue and Loara Street around 2:30 p.m. Thursday when he was hit by a raised Ford F-150 pickup, according to Anaheim Sgt. Rick Martinez.
The truck had apparently stopped at a stop sign on Orangewood, possibly giving the boy the impression that the driver would remain stopped, Martinez said.
The unidentified truck driver told police he never saw the boy on the bicycle. Martinez said it's possible the height of the truck obscured the driver's vision.
It's believed Vela was wearing a helmet.
The boy was rushed to UCI Medical Center in Orange in critical condition, but was pronounced dead a short time later.
No tickets or citations have been issued in the crash.
