The 9-year-old boy who was struck by a driver next to his school on Wheeler Road SE earlier this month may be paralyzed from neck down. Kaidyn Green is one of several people who’ve been seriously injured by drivers while walking the road in Ward 8 in recent months, and now the child possibly faces lifelong disabilities from the traffic incident.

Kaidyn’s mother told Fox 5 through an attorney that the family’s doctors believe Kaidyn will not have the ability to move most of his body. After being hit around 2 p.m. by a man driving a Nissan sedan with D.C. plates on Dec. 10, Kaidyn was treated at a local hospital.

The bronchoscopy procedure to treat the boy’s injured lungs was successful. Kaidyn is now scheduled for surgery, a cervical fusion, early next month. Green’s mother remains hopeful that the surgery will restore some of his ability to move.

“Kaidyn is a strong and courageous 9-year-old who is alert and aware of his condition. His mother has remained by his bedside at Children’s National Hospital since the accident,” the family’s attorney told Fox 5. “She wishes to express her gratitude to the professional and caring doctors and medical staff at the hospital. She also wishes to express her gratitude for all the messages of concern and expressions of sympathy for Kaidyn and for his full recovery.”

The District witnessed a disturbing number of traffic incidents in 2021.  D.C. is having its most deadly year in over a decade, at 40 traffic fatalities as of Dec. 20. Ward 7 saw the most fatalities, followed by Ward 2 and Ward 8, according to government data.

But as Kaidyn’s experience demonstrates, incidents short of fatalities have major impacts on families and the community.

The D.C. government has announced several initiatives in response to the rash of incidents, particularly on Wheeler Road SE. The city’s Department of Transportation announced last Thursday that the agency is narrowing parts of the road in an effort to slow traffic. The agency plans to solicit community feedback before construction begins sometime in the spring.

DDOT will also create a dedicated pick-up and drop-off zone at KIPP D.C. preparatory, the school that Kaidyn attended.

Several members of the D.C. Council also back legislation that addresses traffic injuries and deaths near school campuses. The bill, introduced by Ward 4 Councilmember Janeese Lewis George, adds four-way stops around a quarter-mile of any school, additional officer patrols, standardized speed limits near schools, and other safety provisions.