Two injured crossing street near OCC

COSTA MESA — A 43-year-old woman is in critical condition after police said she was hit by an Orange Coast College student’s truck in front of the OCC parking lot exit at Adams Avenue on Wednesday afternoon.

The driver, a 20-year-old Tustin resident, was leaving OCC in his Ford F-150 when he approached the Adams and Pinecreek Drive intersection.

He intended to turn right onto Adams, and after letting a student cross the marked crosswalk before the turn, he rolled forward to check oncoming traffic, police said.

As he looked left at traffic to see when he could merge, two women were crossing in front of the truck, outside of the crosswalk, said Lt. Marty Carver.

“It looks like the pedestrians are at fault at this point, but the investigation is ongoing,” Carver said.

The driver saw his chance to merge and began to accelerate until he heard the screaming, according to police.

He hit the 45-year-old woman, who suffered a critical head injury and was taken to Western Medical Center’s Trauma Center in Santa Ana. Her sister, 73, was taken to Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian in Newport Beach with moderate injuries.

The driver was not cited.

Police shut down the two right lanes of eastbound Adams east of Pinecreek for several hours after the crash.