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Pitt Student In Wheelchair Hit By Car On Campus

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Police are investigating an accident on the University of Pittsburgh campus this afternoon that sent a Pitt student to the hospital.

The 19-year-old student was in a wheelchair on the sidewalk along Forbes Avenue near the Cathedral of Learning.

Police say one car tried to illegally pass another at a stoplight, forcing the other car onto the sidewalk, hitting the woman, and trapping the wheelchair underneath the car.

Pittsburgh Police Sgt. James Vogel says the woman is lucky to be alive.

"It's not like she's mobile like we are – she can't run," he said. "She kind of got stuck there."

Witnesses watched in horror. Shaun Pierce saw it happen right in front of him.

"I heard tires squeal and a car came flying, jumped the curb and unfortunately there was a young lady in a wheelchair there," he said. "Other people on the sidewalk, they were able to get out of the way, but she was dead center and nowhere for her to go."

The girl is in good condition. She suffered a broken arm.

Police are expected to write citations for one or both drivers involved.

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