A family is seeking information on a hit-and-run accident that left Elvira Rivera, 76, critically injured while taking a walk along Tobacco Road in the South Valley.
According to a Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office report, deputies found Rivera unconscious with severely injured legs. Deputies inspecting the scene discovered large tire marks made by what looked like heavy mobile equipment. Rivera survived but had to have one of her legs amputated. Now the family is looking for any information on the hit-and-run driver.
“We just hope that somebody comes forward. We’re assuming that it was an accident, but even still, somebody has to be responsible for this,” Rivera’s daughter, Lisa Cremer told KRQE.
The incident occurred on April 26 before 3 p.m. when deputies arrived at the scene. Her family told KRQE she stopped to take a break under a tree near a ditch bank. When she did not return from her daily walk, family members searched the area but didn’t know her whereabouts until receiving a call from the hospital.
“They told us that her legs were mangled,” Rivera’s daughter, Marisol Sanchez said. “They told me it was not a vehicle, that it had to be a big truck or a tractor. At that point, they took her into surgery. We had yet to see her. They had to amputate her left leg.”
Doctors are still battling to save Elvira Rivera's right leg. She faces a long road to recovery from the injuries that will completely change her life.
“She was pretty independent before,” Rivera’s granddaughter, Kylah Guerra told KRQE. “She loved doing things on her own. She is not going to be able to do anything without someone being with her 24/7.”
Anyone with any information on the hit-and-run is asked to contact the family at marisol3rivera@gmail.com or BCSO directly.
