17-year-old seriously injured after being hit by a City of Buffalo garbage truck

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — A 17-year-old Buffalo teenager suffered serious injuries after being struck by a City of Buffalo garbage truck Wednesday morning.

It all happened just before 8:30 a.m. Wednesday at 14th and Rhode Island Streets.

Buffalo police said the truck backed up and struck the 17-year-old. The boy was taken by ambulance to Oishei Children's Hospital, where he underwent surgery for internal injuries. According to police, the teenager is in critical condition.

A witness told 7 News that the garbage truck was reversing at a high rate of speed.

WKBW

Surveillance video captured the incident was captured at a nearby landscaping business. In the video, you can see the truck backing up twice at the corner of 14th and Rhode Island. That's when the teenager was hit.

WKBW

Another witness said he watched the driver back the garbage truck through Rhode Island and hit the child.

“The garbage truck backed up from over there, from the other corner, and then stopped right here just as the boy was about to cross,” the witness said. “He hit him and rolled over him as he went back and forth. There was another kid right near the fire hydrant, right there, who actually told them, “Stop, there’s someone down there.”

WKBW

Buffalo police impounded the garbage truck. The incident remains under investigation by the Buffalo Police Department and the Erie County District Attorney's Office.