Newsletter Signup
Stay up to date on all the latest news from Boston.com
Freshman UMass Dartmouth student struck and killed in on-campus crash
The victim was identified as Frank Petillo, Jr., a bioengineering student.
A freshman-year UMass Dartmouth student was struck and killed in an on-campus crash, a school administrator said Thursday.
Frank Petillo, Jr., a bioengineering student, was killed in the crash, UMass Dartmouth Chancellor Mark Fuller said in a message to staff and students on Thursday night, WCVB reports.
According to the news station, campus police responded around 5:30 p.m. to a report of a pedestrian who was hit by a car on campus. Officers found Portillo lying on Ring Road with significant injuries, the outlet reports.
He was brought to St. Luke’s Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The Bristol County District Attorney’s office said the driver of the gray Honda Accord was another UMass student who stayed at the scene, WCVB reports.
Advertisement:
Fuller said it has been “a very difficult week.”
“We feel a collective pain even if we do not personally know those who have passed,” Fuller wrote. “We sit in class together. We work together. We pass each other in the halls. We are often more connected than we realize.”
He urged members of the school community to keep Petillo’s family, friends, and classmates in their thoughts and prayers.
“He will be sorely missed,” Fuller wrote.
Students and staff in need of support can consult the Counseling Center, WCVB reports. The center’s operating hours were extended on Friday for those in need of services. Campus ministers are also available.
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com