Man struck and killed by vehicle on U.S. 71 trying to pick up cellphone

A man struck and killed by a vehicle on U.S. 71 Wednesday night was trying to retrieve his cellphone from the side of the road, according to police.

The man died at a hospital after he was struck by a city work van about 10 p.m. in the southbound lanes of U.S. 71 near Emanuel Cleaver II Boulevard.

The man had stepped out of a vehicle that was pulled to the side of the highway after he realized a cellphone had been left on the roof and fallen onto the road. Another one of the five people in the vehicle also stepped out to try to retrieve the phone, and witnessed the man struck by a city van.

The driver of the van was not injured, police said. The southbound lanes of U.S. 71 were closed for about two hours.

Ian Cummings, icummings@kcstar.com

This story was originally published August 13, 2015 at 5:42 PM with the headline "Man struck and killed by vehicle on U.S. 71 trying to pick up cellphone."