(California Highway Patrol officer Craig Geddes (right) gets help from another officer early Wednesday morning at the onset of an investigation where an SUV plowed into a pedestrian on Soquel Drive. Photo by Tarmo Hannula/Pajaronian)
SOQUEL — A man suffered serious injuries early Wednesday when he was struck by an SUV in Soquel Village.
California Highway Patrol officer Trista Drake said a 70-year-old man was crossing Soquel Drive on the 4700 block of Soquel Drive around 7:30 a.m. when a female driver of a Toyota 4-Runner, traveling northbound on Soquel Drive, bashed into him in a crosswalk.
When firefighter/paramedics arrived within minutes (their station is next door to the crash site), they found the man unconscious on the pavement on Soquel Drive. He was rushed by ground ambulance to the trauma center at Natividad Medical Center in Salinas because rescue helicopters couldn’t navigate the low cloud ceiling.
Drake said it did not appear that drugs or alcohol played a role in the crash, which is still under investigation.
Around a decade ago a woman was struck by a truck and killed in the same crosswalk. Following an extensive investigation by the CHP, a pedestrian crossing pushbutton, flashing lights and better signage was added to the crosswalk.
