An 8-year-old boy died from injuries after being hit by a vehicle near a San Jose elementary school Friday.
At about 8:05 a.m., units responded to reports of collision at Castlemont Avenue and Driftwood Drive, near Castemost Elementary School. According to police, the driver is at the scene and was cooperating with the authorities.
The boy was taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries and was later declared dead. His babysitter, 44, was also hit and was hospitalized with moderate injuries.
“Obviously, this is a very horrible tragedy,” San Jose police Officer Steve Aponte said.
Preliminary investigation reveals the driver was traveling southbound on Castmont Avenue when they hit the pedestrians in a marked crosswalk at Driftwood Drive.
“This was a standard crosswalk,” Aponte said. “This is not an enhanced crosswalk as we’ve seen before that has lights or signage that differentiates. This is merely two yellow lines painted on the roadway.”
Police believed the driver was running between 20 and 30 mph in the 25 mph residential zone. Alcohol and drugs are ruled out from the incident.
“It’s very unfortunate, but the reality is folks need to follow the rules of the road,” Aponte said. “You need to slow down. You need to be attentive. You need to make sure that you’re watching, especially in a trafficked area that is nearby a school.”
