Homeless & disabled veteran in wheelchair struck, killed by semi-truck in El Paso’s Lower Valley

A homeless, disabled veteran in a wheelchair was struck and killed late Friday afternoon by a semi-truck near North Loop and Americas in the city’s Lower Valley, witnesses told ABC-7.

El Paso police confirmed the deadly accident happened around 4 p.m. At the scene, a white sheet covered the victim and a mangled wheelchair with American flags attached to it sat nearby the stopped semi — which appeared to be turning at the time it hit the man.

Workers at nearby businesses identified the victim as Sydney Caldwell and said he was a regular at that intersection, where he frequently solicited money. They said Caldwell, estimated be in his late 50s or early 60s, was a disabled veteran who had been homeless for roughly two decades — living out of his van, which was parked at a mechanic shop in the neighborhood.

Caldwell’s death was the fourth traffic fatality of the week in El Paso.

Police closed all lanes of the North Loop in both directions, as well as the exit from Loop 375, for over four hours after the deadly accident as they investigated.

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KVIA 2019