Don Sweeney
The Charlotte Observer
(TNS)
An SUV going the wrong way struck 22 Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department trainees on a run, leaving some critically injured, California news reports say.
The collision took place at about 6:30 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 16, in Whittier near a sheriff’s training facility, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said in a news release.
About 40 to 50 recruits appeared to be running together when some were hit, KABC reported.
The Los Angeles County Fire Department told the station 22 trainees were hit, with five in critical condition. The 22-year-old driver of the SUV, which was going the wrong way, also was injured, firefighters told KABC.
The deputy recruit class was struck while on a training run, the release said. A neighbor told KTTV that recruits often jog on the street in brightly colored safety vests.
Aerial videos show a damaged SUV crashed at the scene.
The driver was detained at the scene, the Los Angeles Times reported. The trainees are part of the STARS Explorer Training Academy, according to the publication.
“It is hard to see because these young people are getting ready to go put themselves in the line of danger in their career, and who knows that while you’re training to do that, you’ve put yourself in harm’s way,” Capt. Sheila Kelliher of the Los Angeles County Fire Department told KTLA.
Whittier is a city of 87,000 people about 20 miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles.
Investigators ask that anyone with information call 213-229-1850.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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