A vehicle crash at Sacramento and Fairview streets in South Berkeley left a pedestrian unresponsive Wednesday night, according to preliminary reports.
Police have responded to the scene, creating a large perimeter with yellow caution tape, community members tell Berkeleyside. The call about the crash came in at about 9:05 p.m.
Just before 10 p.m., police sent out an alert advising community members to avoid Sacramento Street from Woolsey and 66th streets south to Harmon Street due to an investigation into “a major traffic incident.”
Berkeleyside has asked BPD for more detail.
According to unconfirmed radio traffic reviewed by Berkeleyside, the driver who struck the pedestrian called police to report the crash. The driver was upset and had two young children in the car. An officer who responded to the scene found the pedestrian down in the roadway with a head injury and bleeding from the nose. She was breathing but was not responsive.
The Berkeley Fire Department took the pedestrian to Oakland’s Highland Hospital — the regional trauma center — for treatment, according to unconfirmed radio traffic.
Police planned to call out the department’s Fatal Accident Investigation Team, which handles serious crashes as well as fatal ones.
Berkeleyside will update this post when more information is provided.
Update, 11:10 p.m. BPD has confirmed that a driver in a GMC Yukon struck a female pedestrian at about 9:05 p.m. at Sacramento and Fairview streets. The pedestrian appeared to be in her 60s, but that had not been confirmed, said BPD Lt. David Lindenau. The woman was unresponsive when first responders arrived and was taken to Highland Hospital. The driver remained at the scene and is cooperating with the investigation. Lindenau confirmed that BPD’s Fatal Accident Investigation Team had been called out due to the severity of the crash. The roadway will continue to be closed during the investigation.
Update, Thursday, May 30: BPD has identified the driver as a 39-year-old Berkeley man. The pedestrian who was hit is a woman in her 70s. She sustained serious injuries. As of Thursday, she was in critical condition but was stable.
Update, June 20: The woman who was hit in this collision has died, authorities report. Crista Carlson of Emeryville was 70 years old. She died in Emeryville on June 13, according to the Alameda County coroner’s office. Her cause of death remains under investigation. The coroner’s office will look into whether the Berkeley crash contributed to Carlson’s death.
CORRECTION: The person who called BPD to report the crash was, in fact, the involved driver. Berkeleyside has fixed the story.
