Rohnert Park man struck, killed on Rohnert Park Expressway

An 82-year-old Rohnert Park man died Friday after being hit by a car on a stretch of Rohnert Park Expressway in Rohnert Park.

The collision occurred around noon in the left eastbound lane between San Simeon Drive and Snyder Lane, according to the Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety.

The pedestrian, whose name hasn’t been released, was walking south when he was hit by a burgundy Ford Fusion, Deputy Chief Aaron Johnson said at the scene.

He was not in a crosswalk and was hit on a section of the expressway with two lanes in each direction and trees lining the raised center median.

The driver, who was described as a young woman, told police the man “came out of the blue,” Johnson said.

The collision was in front of the Rohnert Park Community Center where a group of traveling nurses from Southern California had set up a COVID-19 vaccination clinic in the parking lot.

They tried to treat the victim while also directing traffic. Community Center staff and passersby also assisted.

“We did everything we could, but he was gone by the time we got there,” said Rebecca Salvati, a registered nurse with Logistics Health Institute-Optum Serve in Riverside.

Nearby residents said they heard the collision, which occurred during a lunch-hour rush that adds traffic to Rohnert Park Expressway.

Armando Benavides, 72, lives next to the Community Center parking lot and was talking to the nurses when the crash happened.

He heard the impact and turned just in time to see the immediate aftermath.

“I just watched him bounce off the windshield. (The driver) was screaming. It's a shame,” he said.

Benavides said he also ran to the pedestrian, who he said wasn't moving when everyone arrived.

Police remained at the scene late into the afternoon and eastbound traffic was diverted onto residential streets. The road reopened just before 4 p.m. Friday.

Westbound traffic on Rohnert Park Expressway was not affected.

You can reach Staff Writer Colin Atagi at colin.atagi@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @colin_atagi