SALT LAKE CITY — A Salt Lake City woman remains in the hospital battling critical injuries days after being struck by a car near Pioneer Park. But she wasn't the only one affected by the accident.
“I couldn’t stop crying. I couldn’t stop shaking cause I was just so worried about her,” said Sara Wood, a witness to how it happened.
It was before 7 a.m. Thursday and Wood was on her way to work when the woman stepped out into the street near 400 South and 400 West. Wood saw the woman and braked, but the car to Wood’s left hit her.
“I just can’t stop thinking about her. Make sure she’s OK, if she’s going to make it,” she said.
Luckily, Wood is a medical assistant and was able to care for her until medics arrived.
“I flipped around, called 911 and I tried to help her as much as I could,” she said. “My ex-husband was hit on his motorcycle a couple years ago and I was the first one on-scene. It kind of brought back those memories.”
The intersection is a busy one, and drivers say pedestrians in the area have a tendency to walk into traffic.
“I would definitely say that there’s been a couple scares,” said Lucas Lige. “They’ll be walking into the street, crossing the road, not at the crosswalks. Not at the right spots.”
Dogwalkers say that even when they do follow correct crossing rules, drivers still don’t care.
“They won’t stop. They’ll look at you,” said Koixmali Frazier. “To them it’s just about getting through the intersection instead of taking time and going slow. They just want to get to wherever they’re going to.”
Whether people are walking or driving, Wood is asking everyone to pay attention.
“Keep an eye out. No matter what time of day it is, just keep your eyes open,” she said.
The Salt Lake City Police Department said the crash is still under investigation and that the driver did stay on-scene and has been cooperating with officers.
