Police offer safety tips after recent pedestrian fatalities

After three pedestrians in Chattanooga were killed in separate incidents over the past two weeks and with school starting Wednesday, police are reminding drivers, bikers and walkers to be mindful and exercise caution, especially during student dropoff and pick-up times.

So far this year, Chattanooga police have responded to more pedestrian fatalities than during the same time in 2017, according to Chattanooga police traffic data.

While the number of crashes involving pedestrians is about the same, there have been six fatalities while there were only two in 2017.

The most recent fatalities include a woman who was killed Tuesday while crossing Shallowford Road near Hamilton Place mall and two men who were found dead on the side of roads in separate incidents over a twoday period last week.

The woman, who police have not yet identified, was crossing the road in low light at 6:44 a.m. when she was hit by a driver who was going through an intersection on a green light, police said in a news release.

Jeffery Randall Harris, 51, was found out of view in the grassy median in the 300 block of Highway 153 southbound on July 29, another news release stated.

The following day, a passing motorist saw Donald Rackley, 62, on the side of the road and alerted police, according to another news release. Rackley was pronounced dead by Hamilton County Emergency Services at the scene.

Pedestrian-related collisions can be minimized, police say, by using sidewalks, crossing at crosswalks and waiting for “walk” signals.