HIGHLAND SPRINGS, Va. — Neighbors discovered the mother and her toddler in a ditch after they were hit by a car along a busy road in Highland Springs last Friday, sources told reporter Jon Burkett.
Twenty-five-year-old Howquana Kara Bugg, of Henrico, succumbed to her injuries on Tuesday after she was hit walking along the side of Nine Mile Road holding her son around 1:15 a.m. on Friday, July 5, according to Henrico Police.
Burkett said she was walking away from a friend's house when they pair were hit.
The 21-month-old child remained hospitalized in serious condition, officials said Wednesday.
Sources told Burkett that two women setting on a deck heard what sounded like a cat crying. But when they listened more closely, they realized it was a child. They found Bugg and her son, Daimonte Jr., in a ditch.
A neighbor who spoke to Burkett on the condition of anonymity said Bugg's brothers stopped by her home Tuesday afternoon looking for video of the incident.
"She was really trying to protect her baby," the woman said. "So it just sounds like it's a little bit more than an accident."
That neighbor added that the area is beyond dangerous.
"Right here on this corner, four accidents," the woman said. "Three up there and two over here, including a woman who drove a car into my house," she said.
WATCH: Neighbor hopes person who hit mother, toddler 'will be truthful enough to come forward'
Police: Silver sedan may have front passenger-side damage
Officers believe the driver of the possibly silver sedan/coupe hit the pair and kept driving east toward Highland Springs.
"To our knowledge, she was doing everything correctly," Lt. David Turner with Henrico Police said. "The mother was walking along the side of Nine Mile Road holding her 21-month-old child when she was struck by a vehicle somewhat head-on because she was walking in the opposite direction of travel.”
Henrico's Crash Team has pieced together how the crash happened, but since the incident occurred so early in the morning, police said they will need community help to find the driver responsible. Investigators do not yet know if alcohol played a factor in the wreck.
"Henrico Police asks the public to keep their eyes open in the Newbridge Road/Highland Springs area for this vehicle which may have damage to the front passenger side," officials wrote.
Neighbors:
There are no sidewalks, a shoulder, or street lights in the area where the mother and toddler were hit, something neighbors said is an ongoing issue since many people walk and bike to the commercial areas near Laburnum from the neighborhoods closer to the Highland Springs community.
Also, multiple neighbors said drivers routinely ignore the 40 mph speed limit in the area, making more dangerous an already tricky transportation area.
"This particular spot right here sees a lot of accidents," one neighbor, who has lived near the hit-and-run scene for a decade, previously said. "Drivers not paying attention, drivers distracted, drivers going too fast... We definitely need a sidewalk, also, maybe a speed reduction."
Police said the suspect's car, possibly a silver sedan, continued driving east toward Highland Springs.
Anyone with information about the car, crash or the person responsible is urged to call Crash Team Investigator R. Hostetler at 804-501-5000. You can also submit tips anonymously through Crime Stoppers at 804-780-1000 or by using P3tips.com. Crime Stoppers offers rewards up to $1,000 for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of a suspect.
Depend on CBS 6 News and WTVR.com for complete coverage of this important local story. Anyone with more information can email newstips@wtvr.com to send a tip.
