MEADOWBROOK: “She ran right onto Hwy,” witness says of pedestrian, 56, killed crossing SR-74

MEADOWBROOK — A Perris-area woman who died after reportedly darting in front of traffic along busy SR-74 Wednesday afternoon had been stepping “in and out” of traffic just prior to being hit and darted in front of the passenger vehicle that hit her, according to officials investigating the deadly collision.

The accident happened near Meadowbrook/Greenwald Avenue, in the unincorporated community of Meadwbrook about halfway between the cities of Perris and Lake Elsinore.

Riverside County Sheriff-Coroner’s officials later identified 56-year-old Ingrid Hammond, as the woman killed in the collision. According to a coroner’s release, the victim died about seven minutes after the accident happened and she was pronounced deceased at the scene at 2:15 p.m.

CHP, Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire and other emergency first responders were dispatched to the scene of the accident just before 2:10 p.m., CHP Public Information Officer Mike Lassig explained after the fatal collision.

When officials arrived they found a woman, later identified as Hammond, down and unresponsive in the south shoulder of SR-74, just east of Greenwald Avenue.

Within minutes of their arrival, officials determined Hammond had already succumbed to her injuries and she was pronounced deceased at the scene.

Officers who investigated the collision spoke with the driver who fatally struck Hammond as well as other witnesses and determined just before the accident the pedestrian had been standing along the south shoulder of SR-74 just east of Greenwald Avenue.

“Witnesses observed (Hammond) stepping in and out of the eastbound #2 lane,” Lassig explained.

At the same time, Isaac Guzman, 28, of Perris, was driving a 2013 Mazda 3 eastbound on SR-74, according to officials, who said he was traveling about 45 mph, well below the posted 60 mph limit.

Just as Guzman was about to pass Hammond, the pedestrian ran northbound into the lanes of traffic, directly in front of the oncoming Mazda. Guzman was not able to swerve or stop in time to avoid hitting Hammond and his Mazda’s front-end struck Hammond’s left side. The impact knocked the victim from the highway onto the road’s asphalt shoulder.

The morning after the fatal collision one area resident, who later requested to not be named, wrote in a Facebook comment that she had been traveling westbound on SR-74 approaching Greenwald Avenue when she saw Hammond suddenly dart in front of the Mazda that hit her.

“She just ran right out onto the highway,” the still shaken woman later explained in a private message. “I don’t know if she was looking at traffic further back and just didn’t see the car (that hit her) or if she thought she had more time, but it was just awful.”

“After seeing that I couldn’t eat and I was up all night long with nightmares,” the witness explained. “Seeing that … that was something I don’t think I’ll ever forget.”

Eastbound SR-74’s #2 lane was closed for about two hours and fifteen minutes while officials conducted their initial on-scene investigation.

CHP’s investigation is ongoing and Lassig used the opportunity to remind all pedestrians  “to stay as far right on the shoulders or sidewalks as possible and only cross roadways in marked locations such as a crosswalk.”

 

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Trevor Montgomery, who recently moved from Riverside County to Shasta County, runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for Riverside County based newspapers Valley News, The Valley Chronicle and Anza Valley Outlook as well as Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County.

Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident.

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations, including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center and Lake Elsinore Station, along with other locations.