Pedestrian Struck, Killed on Highway 74 in Homeland

HOMELAND (CNS) – A 33-year-old pedestrian was fatally struck by a pickup truck while trying to cross Highway 74 in Homeland, authorities said Tuesday. Carrie Walrath of Homeland was hit at about 9:35 p.m. Monday on the westbound side of the highway, just east of Highland Palm Drive, according to the California Highway Patrol. Officer Mike Lassig said Walrath was attempting to cross the four-lane corridor from south to north, where there is no crosswalk, when a 2002 Ford F-250 pickup approached, traveling roughly 55 mph. Lassig said the victim stepped "directly into the path of the vehicle." The driver, identified only as a 21-year-old Hemet man, was unable to stop or swerve to miss her and "collided into the victim within the No. 1 westbound lane," the CHP spokesman said. Riverside County Fire Department paramedics reached the location within a few minutes and pronounced Walrath dead at the scene. The pickup driver, who was not injured, was questioned but not arrested. The investigation is ongoing, and anyone with information was asked to contact the CHP’s Temecula office at 951-506-2000. Copyright 2023, City News Service, Inc.