A 54-year-old man has serious injuries after he was struck by a vehicle while walking in the bicycle lane of Pershing Drive near B Street in Golden Hill, the San Diego Police Department said Thursday.
Darren Stevenson was walking to get dinner with his girlfriend, Tara Chaffee, in the westbound bicycle lane when a vehicle drifted and struck him at about 8:16 p.m. Wednesday, SDPD Officer John Buttle said.
Chaffee said the street was dark but Stevenson had two flashlights. They were in the bike lane hugging the curb.
“All the sudden I heard just an impact and he was gone and his body was thrown,” Chaffee said. “He didn’t brake I saw no brake lights come on at all."
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The swerve did not appear to her as accidental.
“He swerved. He knew. It was just, the situation was too odd,” Chaffee said.
Stevenson was found unconscious and was taken to a hospital for a collapsed lung, a skull fracture, a cervical spinal column fracture, a cut to his lower lip, and an intracerebral hemorrhage, the officer said.
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“I saw blood from his head, he was moaning. I was trying to find his phone. I was trying to wave traffic down nobody would stop,” Chaffee said.
The two are both unhoused and have been together for almost three years. Stevenson stays at the safe sleeping lot on B Street at the city’s Central Operations Station. It’s just a block from where he was hit.
“Life situations, he lost his family, just life," Chaffee said. "He is working really hard to get on his feet."
The driver took off from the scene and has not been identified.
Chafee lost her phone in the accident. She’s been waiting all day for word and doesn’t even know what hospital in which Darren is being treated.
"It's been rough. I haven’t been able to see him. I know he is OK I want to see that he is OK,“ Chaffee said.
The driver could face felony hit-and-run charges if found. Police described the vehicle as possibly a gray, newer model BMW. Chaffee said the car was dark grey, possibly black, and may have been a Toyota Camry or Corolla.
Traffic Division officers responded to the scene and were investigating the collision. Anyone with information was encouraged to contact Crimestoppers.
