Buena Park, California — January 20, 2011
Police say two teenage pedestrians were injured on Thursday when they were struck by a van along Beach Boulevard in Buena Park.
The Buena Park Police Department reports that the two teenage boys, both 15, were walking home from Buena Park High School around 3:45 p.m. when they were struck by a 2003 Chevrolet Astro van, driven by 53-year-old Gilbert Armando Gonzales of Fountain Valley, as he traveled south along Beach Bouelvard, near Auto Center Drive.
One of the teens was run over and treated at the scene before being transported to University of California-Irvine Medical Center. The other was trapped underneath the van, leading Orange County firefighters to use rescue airbags to free him from underneath the vehicle. He was removed after 30 minutes and airlifted to University of California-Irvine Medical Center.
Both victims were able to speak at the scene, according to emergency response personnel, but both were listed in critical condition.
Investigators suspect Mr. Gonzales suffered a seizure moments before the crash, causing his van to jump the sidewalk, not far from the Interstate 5 overpass. He was also transported to a nearby hospital for treatment and evaluation. Alcohol has not bee ruled out as a factor in the crash.
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