Hit by car in Hemet, boy suffers broken leg, other injuries

HEMET — A boy suffered a broken leg and other injuries after he was struck by a car while darting across a busy Hemet street yesterday afternoon, Thursday, Nov. 21. The accident, which sent the boy to an area hospital via an air ambulance, happened in the area of Stetson Ave. and Gilbert St.

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City of Hemet Police and Fire departments, along with other emergency personnel, were first alerted to the accident around 4:15 p.m., after receiving multiple reports of a vehicle that struck a young pedestrian who had been crossing the street with several friends.

911 callers reported the boy was seriously injured and down in the roadway.

When officials arrived they found several witnesses and good Samaritans surrounding the injured boy, while providing him aid and comfort. Witnesses later said the victim appeared to be 10 to 13-years-old, and said he was alert and talking, but in tremendous pain. 

Officials also found a grey Nissan with moderate front-end and hood damage near the injured child, as well as various personal items, including the boy’s shoes which he was knocked out of, strewn about the roadway.

Based on the victim’s injuries, medical personnel at the scene requested an air ambulance and a Mercy helicopter was soon prepped and ready to airlift the victim.

Although there were some reported delays in the victim’s wait for an AMR ambulance, paramedics eventually transported the injured boy to Hemet-Ryan airport, where the Mercy helicopter had been waiting for about twenty minutes.

Once AMR delivered the boy to the waiting Mercy paramedics, the helicopter airlifted him to an area trauma center.

The elderly driver of the car that hit the boy was reportedly shaken up, but uninjured in the collision. She was evaluated at the scene by paramedics, but did not require further medical treatment.

“It’s the saddest thing I’ve ever seen,” area resident Ashley Arlene Roe, who was one of several good Samaritans who stopped to offer help after the accident, later said of the ordeal. “He ran across Stetson and couldn’t stop in time and was hit by an elderly lady.”

“This poor child was laying on the ground and I kept telling him take deep breaths the ambulance is on the way,” Roe continued. “I was holding his hands as he was crying asking if his leg is broken. I hugged his friends and cousins who were (hysterically) crying.”

“How traumatizing for children to see,”  Roe lamented.

Hemet PD is investigating the cause of yesterday’s crash and officials have not released any details regarding their investigation, which is is ongoing.

This is a developing story that will be updated as new information is available.



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Timothy Franseze/Public Safety Incidents photos

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Contact the writer: [email protected]

Trevor Montgomery, 48, moved in 2017 to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News, (the now defunct) Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; as well as Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County and Mountain Echo in Shasta 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. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s 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.

Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.

Trevor has been married for more than 29 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 16 grandchildren.