Orlando – Orlando neighbors are angry and heartbroken after a woman was hit and killed by a vehicle, and the driver who hit her reportedly drove off without stopping or offering help.
The woman has been identified as 80-year-old Michelle Allen.
According to neighbors and a friend, Allen was homeless, kind, and known to feed stray cats near the neighborhood.
“They call her ‘the cat lady,'” one person told “Heart of Gold.”
“She was homeless and she spent her entire Social Security check feeding animals. That’s what she loved,” her friend Debra Franklin said. She said Allen was on her way to feed the cats when she was hit.
“When she got hit, the cats were all standing there. You could only see cats waiting for her. My heart was broken,” Franklin said.
The Florida Highway Patrol said Allen was on her tricycle Monday night near West Lancaster Road and Calypso when she was hit, possibly by a black 2005-2011 BMW 3 Series. A passenger-side mirror was left at the crash site and troopers are asking anyone with information, including repair shops or mechanics, who may have seen a similar vehicle with a missing mirror, to contact FHP.
“If you see a black BMW that does not have a passenger side mirror, please call 911 or dial,” Lt. Tara Crescenzi said.
“It upset me. I was actually quite angry that this happened. She doesn’t deserve something like this,” said Joshua Burgos, who lives in the neighborhood.
Franklin said the intersection is dangerous with too many speeding drivers.
“This road is terrible. My husband doesn’t even want me to walk to the store,” she said, adding that Allen was reportedly hit by a vehicle two years ago.