A 25-year-old Newport News woman and her fiancee were hospitalized Saturday night after they were struck by a car while crossing Jefferson Ave.
Police say the pair were crossing Jefferson east to west to get to the Sunoco station. The woman was operating an electric wheelchair with her fiancee, a 30-year-old Irvin, Texas man, riding on the back.
Workers at the Sunoco say the man had prosthetic legs and had difficulty walking.
Matthew Hall, a store employee who was working at the time of the crash, says the pair came in frequently.
“Always friendly, always in a good mood. No matter even with their disabilities they were always still happy to see everybody,” Hall explained.
Sonya Marrero was walking to the convenience store when she heard the crash.
“I heard a bang,” Marrero explained. “I saw the girl fly. She dragged her – I mean that wheelchair flew.”
Marrero ran to check on the couple and then started directing traffic to keep the situation from getting worse.
“I started controlling traffic on this side,” Marrero said. “Then another guy started controlling traffic on that side, just in case another car wouldn’t come and run them over!”
The pair were struck by a 1996 Honda Accord traveling south on Jefferson in the right lane driven by an 82-year-old woman.
The female victim reportedly sustained broken bones in the crash and is under treatment at Riverside Regional Medical Center. She is expected to be okay.
The fiancee was transported to Mary Immaculate Hospital and then to Norfolk General via Nightingale. Police say his injuries are still life-threatening.
The driver was uninjured in the crash.
Police do not expect that the woman will face any charges.
