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Man in wheelchair injured in car accident

WHITEWATER — A man hit by a car while crossing the street in his wheelchair Tuesday was in critical condition this morning at a Madison hospital.

Michael Chaloupka, 23, a recent graduate of UW-Whitewater and originally from Waukesha, was crossing Main Street at Whiton Street in the crosswalk about 4:30 p.m. when he was struck by a vehicle, Police Chief James Coan said.

Officers continued to investigate this morning, and Coan declined to give the name of the driver until the circumstances of the crash were clearer.

Witnesses told police a vehicle traveling west on Main Street was waiting in the left lane to turn south onto Whiton Street. Chaloupka was crossing Main Street heading north in the crosswalk.

The stopped vehicle blocked Chaloupka from the vision of a second driver, who was driving west in the right lane, and the second vehicle struck Chaloupka, Coan said.

Witnesses told police pedestrian crossing warning lights were not activated at the time of the accident.

Chaloupka was transported to Fort Memorial Hospital in Fort Atkinson and later was flown to University Hospital, Madison.

Although the investigation is not yet complete, police anticipate the driver who hit Chaloupka will be cited for failure to yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk.

Whitewater and UW-Whitewater police and Whitewater rescue responded to the scene.