It’s been a deadly start to the year for pedestrians in northeast Wisconsin.
The DOT is reporting three people have been killed in crashes so far. There were six pedestrian fatalities in all of last year, in the 11-county northeast region.
The five-year average is seven.
In a little more than five years, Safety Engineer Scott Nelson reports the number of pedestrian deaths is up to 37. He says alcohol was a factor in about 35 percent of them. That figure doesn’t specify whether the driver or the pedestrian had been drinking.
A tow truck driver working on I-41 in Ashwaubenon was one of this year’s pedestrian victims. 31-year-old Jesse “Bil” Hettmann of Green Bay was hit by a car.
