Woman Killed By Hit-And-Run Driver As She Walked To Hospital In Lakewood
LAKEWOOD (CBSLA.com) — Authorities Wednesday were looking for a hit-and-run driver that killed a 67-year-old pedestrian as she was walking to a hospital.
The accident happened around 9:56 p.m. Tuesday in the 3700 block of South Street in Lakewood, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said.
Teresa Hernandez, of Downey, and her adult daughter were talking across South Street towards Lakewood Regional Hospital, where Hernandez had dropped off her husband for a dialysis treatment, when she was hit by the suspect's vehicle.
They were not in a crosswalk, officials said.
"She said a car had pulled out of the track and they thought they could make it," witness Gentry Newsom said. "The daughter said she turned and boom, her mother got hit."
Hernandez was declared dead at the scene. Her daughter was not injured.
The suspect's vehicle is described as a compact black Nissan or Honda and likely has extensive front-end damage.
Mike Halim, whose family owns the pharmacy two doors down from the sandwich shop where the mother and daughter stopped just before the incident, told KCAL9's Randy Paige people regularly jaywalk across the stretch of roadway.
"It's a constant," he said.
According to Halim, members of the community have tried for years to convince the city to put in a crosswalk without any success.
He hopes that now someone will listen.
"It would have saved her life, and it could hopefully save lives in the future," he said.
Anyone with information about Tuesday night's hit-and-run should contact the LASD at (562)623-3500.
