Father of six Ompelio Yugu dies after being hit by car at Smithfield

A father of six has died after being struck by a car while crossing Main North Road was reportedly on his way to buy formula for his son.

A 51-year-old father, who died after being hit by a car in Adelaide’s north on Thursday night, was reportedly out to get baby formula for his son.

Craigmore father of six, Ompelio Yugu, died at the scene after being hit crossing Main North Rd.

His wife said her husband was on his way home after buying formula for his young son at the time of the incident.

“There’s no way words to describe the pain I’m going through right now,” she told 7NEWS.

“I want the ground to swallow me.”

Ompelio Yugu died on his way to buy formula for his son. Picture: Facebook

The couple migrated to South Australia from South Sudan 15 years ago.

“Ompelio is a great dad, he loved his kids more than anything,” she said.

The distraught wife said she was grateful for the hard work of first responders.

“I’ll forever be grateful for what they did,” she said.

However, she said it was difficult not knowing what happened when Ompelio was struck by the car.

“Ompelio has kids, they need to know what happened,” she said.

Friends and family gathered today to support Ompelio’s wife and children at their family home and also left floral tributes at the scene of the accident.

Police and emergency services were called to the intersection of Main North Rd, near George McCullum Rd, in Smithfield, about 7.45pm after reports of a serious accident.

Local residents said they haven’t been happy with the crossing on Main North Rd for a while, saying the lights take too long to change.

“A lot of people say there are no cars … blow this, and they just walk across,” Dianne Wilson told 7News.

South-bound lanes on Main North Rd were closed for several hours while emergency services attended the scene, but they reopened a short time later.

The man’s life is the 38th life lost on SA roads this year, compared with 17 this time last year.

A horror Smithfield smash has claimed the life of a Craigmore father. The 51-year-old was crossing Main North Road when he was hit by a car. The latest in 7NEWS Adelaide at 4pm and 6pm | https://t.co/8ftPfGh39Y@pcaldicott7#7NEWSpic.twitter.com/EggwyAcE0I

— 7NEWS Adelaide (@7NewsAdelaide) March 31, 2023

The driver, a 44-year-old Salisbury North man, was not seriously injured, but was taken to hospital as a precaution.

This comes after a pedestrian was hit by a car in Para Hills West at about 6.50pm Monday night.

The 49-year-old Salisbury East woman suffered serious injuries.

Originally published as Father of six Ompelio Yugu dies after being hit by car at Smithfield