Police are searching for the driver of a black Cadillac sedan who was involved in a hit-and-run crash with an 11-year-old boy outside Mercedes-Benz Stadium after the Georgia Tech-Clemson football game Monday night.
Kaine Chastain of Jasper was taken to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston Hospital with a broken leg that required surgery, according to a GoFundMe page set up to help cover his medical expenses. He remains in the hospital after his “tibia and fibula were broken clean through,” the fundraising page said.
A crash report obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution said Kaine ran ahead of his family as they crossed Northside Drive and did not have the right-of-way. The black sedan was going through a yellow light, but a group of pedestrians had already started to cross Northside Drive near the stadium, according to the report. Kaine’s father, Jonathan Chastain, said he witnessed the incident as he walked behind with his 7-year-old daughter.
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Officers were called to the intersection of Northside Drive and Thurmond Street just after 11:20 p.m., the report said. Police found Kaine “screaming in pain” with “an obvious broken lower right leg,” according to the report.
Cameras in the area captured the incident. The report said the footage showed the sedan slow for a moment before fleeing the scene. Investigators were not able to get the car’s tag number, but the report said additional footage was captured by Georgia World Congress Center cameras that might provide new evidence.
Jonathan Chastain, a single father and prominent Georgia Tech fan known as the GT Viking, had taken his two youngest children to Monday’s Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game, according to the GoFundMe page. In an interview with Channel 2 Action News, he said bystanders offered immediate assistance.
“A random Clemson fan, who happened to be a nurse, stopped to help us,” Chastain told the news station. “If anyone knows who she is, I would love to find her and tell her, ‘Thank you.’”
Kaine’s right leg was initially put in a cast, but doctors decided to remove it and perform surgery instead, the GoFundMe page said. His recovery is expected to take months.
The fundraiser, which has garnered more than $6,500, was created to help the Chastain family as Jonathan takes at least two weeks of unpaid leave from work. The page said Chastain has health insurance but will still be responsible for deductibles and co-pays, as well as the cost of physical therapy.
Chastain and the creator of the GoFundMe page, Bob Cookson, are the administrators of an unofficial Georgia Tech football fan group on Facebook that has about 12,000 members.
— Please return to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution for updates.
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