Family, coworkers plead for safer driving after Miami-Dade landscaper killed by passing vehicle in Cutler Bay
Family members and coworkers gathered in grief Thursday at the Cutler Bay site where a 39-year-old man, identified by his mother only as Carlos, was struck and killed while landscaping along the side of the road near U.S. Highway 1 and Southwest 186th Street.
Carlos was working as part of a landscaping crew when he was fatally hit by a passing vehicle. His coworkers, who witnessed the crash, are devastated.
"He loved his father, loved his mother… He had just gotten off the phone with his mom," said coworker Tay Anderson.
Carlos' mother, overwhelmed with grief, was seen carefully collecting his hat and other personal belongings before the scene was cleared. Speaking off-camera, she described her son as a kind and hardworking man and the devoted father of two young daughters.
Coworkers told CBS News Miami that the crash points to a growing problem: distracted driving.
"Drivers don't look out for us," Anderson said. "They don't see us. All they see… is their phones."
"There's no safety for us landscapers working in the middle of the road," added Alex Yingo, another coworker. "They're always rushing by. The guy was a good man. It's just so sad for one of us to pass away like that, out of nowhere."
As Carlos' mother sorted through the remnants of her son's belongings, his coworkers had a clear and urgent message for drivers.
"Just please… slow down. Be aware of our safety too," Yingo said. "We have families. And we're out here working hard."
The identity of the driver has not been released.
