A 16-year-old male remained hospitalized in intensive care Tuesday night after stepping in front of a southbound tractor-trailer on Interstate 71 hours earlier while running from the Buckeye Ranch mental health treatment facility in Grove City.

The teen, whose name has not been released, was taken to OhioHealth Grant Medical Center, where he remains in critical condition, said Grove City police Lt. Rick Butsko.

A preliminary investigation showed that the youth "intentionally stepped in front" of the semi just after 9 a.m. Tuesday, he said.

Nick Rees, president and CEO of Buckeye, said Tuesday night the teenager was a resident of the intensive care unit at the Grove City main facility on Hoover Road. The youth jumped a fence and fled west from the rear of the facility. The teen crossed North Meadows Drive and had a "pretty big lead" on staff members, who were yelling for him to come back as he crossed the northbound lanes of I-71, he said.

The youth was struck when he apparently went over a concrete median in the middle of the interstate and stepped into the path of the southbound tractor-trailer. Police said the semi driver braked and tried to swerve to avoid hitting him. An investigation is continuing, police said, but no charges are expected to be filed against the driver.

Nees said it was "remarkable" the teen survived. The youth underwent surgery for a broken bone Tuesday and will likely need more surgery later this week as part of his recovery, he said.

Nees said he did not know what specifically prompted the teen to run. "Our kids are upset a lot of the time," he said.

Buckeye Ranch provides "emotional, behavioral and mental health services" for children, young adults and families at seven locations across central and southwestern Ohio, according to its website. About 2,350 youths are undergoing Buckeye Ranch care each day, the website says.

After the accident, Nees said counselors were made available to staff members involved and to roommates and others at the facility who know the teen. "Obviously it was a very traumatic situation for everyone," he said.

Rees said an incident like this has never occurred in his 14 years at Buckeye Ranch.

Traffic was closed for hours in both north and southbound lanes on the interstate between State Route 665 and Stringtown Road while police investigated.