PELLA, Iowa — A girl is dead after entering the road on a sled Thursday evening and being hit by a truck, according to the Pella Police Department.
Police responded to a report of a vehicle hitting a pedestrian near the intersection of West 4th Street and Fountain View Drive in Pella around 5:30 p.m. Thursday.
Upon arrival, first responders found that a truck hit a 5-year-old girl, who had been sledding and entered the road from a hill.
The child was transported to Pella Regional Health Center but was pronounced dead shortly after her arrival.
"The thoughts and prayers for the family of this child, for the friends and so many other people in the community that are affected by this," said Capt. Paul Haase with the Pella Police Department. "It's just a really tragic event."
Pella Community School District Superintendent Greg Ebeling told Local 5 the child was a student at Lincoln Elementary School.
"The reality is that these things change people," Ebeling said. "They just do because there's things that you don't completely heal from. But we have to do the best to support each other, to heal as best we can."
Police and Iowa State Patrol continue to investigate the incident.
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