A Mother Training For Her First Marathon Killed By Fleeing Driver In Ecuador

While training for her first marathon race, a woman was struck and killed in Ecuador after being hit by a pickup truck early Friday morning, and the perpetrator ran away from the scene.

According to reports, 38-year-old Monica Andrea Martinich Cohn died where she was struck on the E40 highway outside of Guayaquil. The fatal accident happened at 4:32 am in the La Puntilla sector at kilometer 3 of the road to Samborondón. The Ecuadorian newspaper El Universo said this based on a statement by the Traffic Commission.

As per reports, Monica Cohn was running with two other people, including a man and a woman. Both were uninjured and escaped, according to a report by El Comercio. According to their report, a black pickup moving at very high speed crossed into the right side of the road, which is reserved for bicycles, and hit her while she was running. According to the commission, the pickup driver honked continuously.

Another gray pickup followed the runners as the escort vehicle. The black pickup tried to overtake and then ran over Cohn. According to Expreso, preliminary findings suggest the escort vehicle shifted over to let the faster truck overtake. And the truck did so on the right side of the vehicle.

The driver didn’t stop to render aid. Ecuadorian Traffic Commission recorded the accident as a fatal collision and the perpetrator fleeing the scene. No arrest has been made yet, according to the report as of Saturday.

Video footage of the incident, captured by security cameras and posted on social media, sparked an uproar across Ecuador. The municipal government and traffic authority of Samborondón provided the video footage to investigators to identify the driver. The mayor of Samborondón, Juan José Yúnez, strongly condemned the death and promised to place video evidence at the disposal of the court.

Most reactions to the video online turned into arguments over the runners involved. Many commenters questioned the runners’ and the escort truck’s decision to use the road reserved for bicycles. Traffic authorities have not charged anyone with fault, and the investigation is ongoing.

Monica Cohn belonged to a running club in Guayaquil, trained at a fitness gym in Samborondón, and had participated in half-marathons in Guayaquil and Miami, according to Expreso. Reports say she has recently been preparing for her first marathon in Chicago. She is reportedly the mother of two children.

This incident has sparked debate about the safety of people who train for the marathon on heavily trafficked roads before dawn.