Victim of pedestrian accident back at home
An unnamed female student driving a white Toyota truck hit a student pedestrian identified only as Carla on Tuesday, April 7 around 5:15 p.m. The accident occurred in front of the information booth west of Building 6. Carla was airlifted to USC Trauma Center, Assistant Director of Public Safety Michael Montoya said.
“[The driver] heard the thump and stopped,” Montoya said. “We imagine the sun was an issue.”
He added that the sheriff’s department is still doing an investigation and an official report is still unavailable.
Paul Ruiz, 21, history major, witnessed the accident and assisted Carla until Mt. SAC public safety officials arrived. He was waiting in the drop-off area when he saw a white Toyota truck hit a female walking toward campus.
“I was kind of in shock,” he said. “I’ve never seen anything like that before, and she landed on her side, like she was sleeping.”
Ruiz said he went to help her because trauma victims are not supposed to move. He used his thigh to support her weight so that she would not move until officials arrived. He put his shirt under her head so that her eye, which was “bleeding profusely,” did not touch the pavement and possibly get infected. Mt. SAC public safety officers “patched it up” when they arrived.
“This other guy came over and got [Carla’s] phone out of her pocket to call her parents,” Ruiz said. “[And] the driver of the truck was just in shock and crying.”
He added that he called Carla’s house Wednesday, and her sister told him Carla was OK and at home.
-Charlye Dehart
