The 15-month-old was playing outside his home with other children just after sunset when he was run over by a truck driven by a family friend.
By PHIL DAVIS
Published November 15, 2005
HUDSON - Word that 15-month-old Gavin Tyszko had been hit by a pickup truck spread fast.
Friends and relatives rushed to the accident scene on Ruby Lane on Monday night, then on to Bayonet Point Regional Medical Center, where they heard the grim news.
Gavin was dead.
"He was just a really good kid," family friend Ashley Grove said as she stood outside the hospital Monday night. "He was a really happy baby."
Others stood around in stunned silence, eyes red from tears. Folks in this rural north Pasco County community know each other well.
The driver of the truck, Mark Gilbert Davis, 39, is a longtime friend of Gavin's family. He lives just a few doors down on Ruby Lane.
"There's nothing I can say right now," said Davis' wife, Tammylynn Davis, her voice cracking. "This baby meant as much to us as he did to his family. We were there when he was born. We've been friends a long time. I've got to go."
Florida Highway Patrol Cpl. K. Ratcliffe said that Gavin, his older brother and other children were playing near the road outside their home shortly after sunset on Monday. The dirt road is dark, with a street light several hundred feet away at its intersection with Bolton Avenue.
"The baby ran out in front of the truck," Ratcliffe said. "The left rear tandem tire ran over the baby."
At the scene, several adults consoled children who saw the accident. Gavin's older brother, whose name and age were not available, showed Ratcliffe what happened.
Another young boy stood nearby kicking hard into the dirt.
"It's okay to cry. It's okay to cry," a woman told him.
Pasco County paramedics arrived on the scene at 5:56 p.m. - three minutes after the 911 call came in. But Gavin was pronounced dead at the medical center shortly after arrival.
"There won't be any charges in this at all," Ratcliffe said. "It's just an accident."
--Phil Davis can be reached in west Pasco at 869-6247 or toll-free at 1-800-333-7505, ext. 6247. His e-mail address is pdavis@sptimes.com
