Police say that Sydney Ramirez, the 16-year-old Cypress teen who was struck by a minivan as she walked to school, has died. Ramirez was injured in the La Palma pedestrian accident on Monday morning.
Following the tragic Orange County, California traffic accident, Ramirez was admitted to Long Beach Memorial Hospital where she underwent surgery and was placed on life support. She died at approximately 12:40am on Thursday after her family gave their permission to take her off the machinery.
Meantime, police are trying to determine whether the driver of the minivan, a 55-year-old woman, was distracted at the time of the La Palma car accident. She has yet to be cited.
The authorities have said that others have complained about the intersection of Crescent Avenue and Watson street, which is where the traffic accident occurred. Some find the crosswalk difficult to see, and it is reportedly not uncommon for vehicles to speed through this intersection.
In an unrelated Orange County, California traffic accident involving another student who was headed to school, an 11-year-old sustained head injuries in a Huntington Beach bicycle accident today when he was hit by a van. The boy was transported to UCI Medical Center.
Orange County, California Child Pedestrian Accidents
Children are already at high risk of getting seriously injured in a pedestrian crash. Many of them cannot accurately judge the distance and speed of an approaching vehicle, may not check the street before they cross, and/or do not realize that by walking or biking in front of a moving auto they risk getting hurt or dying.
Child pedestrian accidents can occur anywhere, including on residential streets, roads that have crosswalks, streets without crosswalks, in parking lots, on busy roads, in driveways, and on roads where there are lots of parked cars. Drivers must make sure that they are watching out for pedestrians--especially for young kids who can be harder than adults to spot.
11-year-old boy struck by van, suffers head injuries, OC Register, November 5, 2010
School mourns OC student killed in crosswalk, ABCLocal, November 4, 2010
Pedestrian Safety, Virtual Pediatric Hospital
Related Web Resources:
Pedestrian Safety Fact Sheet, Safe Kids USA
Pedestrians, US Department of Transportation
Our La Palma car accident lawyers represent Orange County, California injury victims. Contact Howard Law today.
