A drunken pedestrian was hit by three vehicles in Brooklyn early yesterday and left bleeding in the street after heartless drivers fled the scene, a witness and cops said.
The 24-year-old victim was crossing Nostrand Avenue and Beverley Road in East Flatbush at about 12:55 a.m. when the mirror of a Ford SUV clipped his face, according to cops.
Seconds later, a black car ran him over and drove off — followed by a white van, which also left before police arrived.
The driver of the van even got out, looked over the fallen pedestrian and drove away after calmly returning to his vehicle.
“Everyone was telling [the driver] to stay and wait for the police, but he just left,” said Ravi Hunter, 42. “That could be me. They left him like trash in the street — like he was garbage.
“Whether he was drinking or not, he shouldn’t be run over like an animal.”
The witness said there was a loud popping sound as the second car, which appeared to do the most damage, ran the man down.
The victim didn’t have the right of way and appeared to be in a daze.
“He was groaning and doing a little talking,” Hunter said. “I don’t know what he was saying, but I could smell the alcohol on his breath.”
Hunter said skin on the man’s leg and buttocks was hanging off.
“His bone was showing, and his flesh was showing,” he said. “It was just like the meat was ripped from his body.”
Cops at the scene said the intoxicated victim might not live, Hunter said. But a Fire Department spokesman said the pedestrian, who was unconscious when EMS transported him to Kings County Hospital, was expected to survive.
Police said the investigation is ongoing.
Hunter snapped photos of the van’s Massachusetts license-plate number and shared the images with police.
“I don’t think [the drivers] knew it was a man in the street. Maybe they thought it was a bag,” Hunter said. “It was just devastating to see that.”
Neighbors say the intersection is prone to close calls late at night, especially because the traffic lights are consecutive.
“People speed down [Nostrand Avenue] to try and make the light,” said Dario Scott, 35. “It’s dangerous.”
One lifelong resident of East Flatbush wasn’t surprised to hear of the gruesome accident.
“It’s Nostrand. It’s like Manhattan — people like to cross whenever they want,” said Vick, 22, who wouldn’t give his last name.
“For [some people], it’s probably crazy, but it’s like that all the time.”
Additional reporting by Daniel Prendergast