Semi strikes teen chasing skateboard in Kent on State Route 516

Published 2:16 pm Thursday, July 7, 2016

A 15-year-old teen suffered critical head injuries after he ran onto State Route 516 in Kent to go after his skateboard and a semi hit the teen.

The accident occurred at about 11:15 a.m. Thursday on eastbound Highway 516 just west of West Meeker Street, according to the State Patrol. The highway is also known as the Kent Des Moines Road.

Paramedics transported the boy to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. He went right into surgery in critical condition, said Trooper Chris Webb, State Patrol spokesman.

“He was riding down the big hill on the shoulder when his board hit something and went into the street,” Webb said. “He went into the street to retrieve it without looking and as he ran back to the shoulder he got hit.”

The boy was skateboarding alone, Webb said. Troopers did not have a hometown for the boy. Webb said he didn’t know where the boy had entered the highway or where he was going.

The State Patrol would not release the name of the boy because he is a juvenile.