Man, 2 Children Injured in Pedestrian vs. Truck Accident on Mildred St. in Brewton, AL

Brewton, AL — April 1, 2025, a man and two children were injured in a pedestrian versus truck accident at about 4:00 p.m. along Mildred Street.

According to authorities, a man was on foot with two young children on Mildred Street crossing Green Street at a crosswalk when the accident took place.

An 18-wheeler hauling an unloaded log trailer was apparently attempting a left turn from Green to Mildred Street. Officials indicate that, for as yet unknown reasons, the pedestrians were struck by the front-right side of the truck.

All three victims suffered injuries and were transported to a local medical facility by EMS in order to receive necessary treatment. Additional details pertaining to this incident are not available at this point in time. The investigation is currently ongoing.

Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman

Crashes involving pedestrians—especially children—and commercial trucks are among the most serious and emotionally charged cases I’ve encountered. When an 18-wheeler strikes people lawfully using a crosswalk, the central question isn’t just how the collision happened, but why the driver didn’t see them and stop in time. In situations like this, the difference between a close call and a life-altering crash usually comes down to training, attention, and timing.

A key factor that needs to be examined right away is visibility. Crosswalks are designed to give pedestrians the right-of-way, but that protection only works if drivers see and respond to people in the intersection. Was the driver looking in the right direction while making the turn? Was there a blind spot issue on the passenger side of the cab? Did the truck have the mirrors, cameras, or other safety features needed to make that left turn safely?

I’ve worked on cases where large trucks had clear lines of sight, but the drivers still claimed not to see the pedestrians they hit. Sometimes that was due to poor mirror use, but more often it involved a lack of proper training or an over-reliance on a vehicle’s blind spot zones. Commercial drivers are trained to “clear” intersections carefully during turns, especially in pedestrian-heavy areas. If the driver didn’t take the necessary steps—or if the company never trained them properly—then fault may rest with both the driver and the employer.

That brings us to the trucking company’s role. If this truck was being operated under a commercial carrier, there are serious questions that need to be answered: Was the driver qualified and properly trained for urban or residential driving? Did the company have procedures in place for left-hand turns in pedestrian zones? Were they monitoring driver performance to catch potential safety issues before something like this happened?

The fact that this happened in a crosswalk should be a flashing red light to investigators. Crosswalks are where pedestrians are supposed to be. If a commercial truck enters that space and fails to yield, the burden is on the driver—and potentially the company—to explain why that happened. Simply saying “I didn’t see them” isn’t enough. The investigation needs to dig into video footage (if any exists), driver logs, safety records, and the vehicle’s equipment to understand what contributed to this failure.

From where I sit, this is the kind of crash that demands a thorough, no-corners-cut investigation. When people are hit while walking with the right of way, especially children, the goal has to be more than figuring out what happened—it has to be finding out how it was allowed to happen, and who should be held responsible. That’s the only way to ensure accountability and to make sure those affected by the wreck receive the clarity and closure they deserve.