LAKELAND, Fla. — A man died after he was hit by a semi-truck in Lakeland just after midnight on Monday.
The Polk County Sheriff's Office said the green Freightliner semi-truck, which belonged to Publix, was being driven east near Pine Chase Avenue by an employee around 12:30 a.m. The employee had just ended his shift and was returning the truck to the Publix warehouse.
Deputies said the truck driver saw the 34-year-old man lying face down in the middle of the eastbound lane of New Tampa Highway. He tried to avoid striking him but was unable to do so and hit the victim, who passed away at the scene.
According to the victim's family, he had been at a bar near the incident drinking earlier in the evening. Since he was too inebriated to drive his motorcycle home, he allegedly told people at the bar that he was going to walk.
The road was closed for around four hours during the investigation, which is still ongoing.
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