By Pepper Fisher

SEQUIM – A Sequim Bay Road resident died Tuesday night after being struck by a car as he stood in the middle of the road talking to an acquaintance.

Clallam County deputies and first responders got the call around 5:00 PM that a pedestrian had been hit on the 3000 block of East Sequim Bay Road.

Investigators say a vehicle had stopped in the road to have a conversation with a local resident. The resident, a male in his 80s, was standing in the roadway talking to the driver through the driver’s window.

A driver coming the other way couldn’t see the man standing in the roadway because he was obscured from view by the parked vehicle’s headlights. As the driver approached at about 30 mph, the man tried to get out of the roadway, but only made it to the middle of the northbound lane when he was struck by the car.

The man was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center but, despite lifesaving efforts, he succumbed to his injuries at 7:15 PM.

Authorities say the investigation is ongoing, but it doesn’t appear that speed or impaired driving was involved.