A 16-year-old girl was airlifted to B.C. Children’s Hospital in Vancouver after she was struck Tuesday by a pickup in the Nanaimo area.
Witnesses told Nanaimo RCMP that the girl was thrown about 18 metres after she was struck while running across the Island Highway at Mary Ellen Drive about 8:15 p.m.
Police said the girl was in the crosswalk but was crossing against the light, and the driver was unable to stop.
A friend of the girl immediately pulled her off the road and people in the vicinity — including an off-duty nurse — stopped to give first aid.
The girl had head and leg injuries and was scheduled to undergo surgery Wednesday morning in Nanaimo, but her condition deteriorated and she was sent to Vancouver.
The driver was very shaken and is being offered support by Nanaimo RCMP Victim Services.
Speed and alcohol do not appear to be factors in the incident, police said.
