A 5-year-old boy was severely injured and his father was also hurt in a hit-and-run crash in the Willmore neighborhood this evening, according to authorities.

The boy and his father were on foot near Magnolia Avenue and Ninth Street when they were hit around 6:40 p.m. Paramedics rushed to the scene and got there within two minutes, Long Beach Fire Department Capt. Jack Crabtree.

“When the medics got there first, they said that the child was on the street with the dad next to him,” he said. Witnesses told fire crews the boy had been in his fathers arms, Crabtree said.

The boy was critically hurt, and crews rushed him to a local hospital before transporting the father to get medical treatment for minor injuries, according to Crabtree.

Police shut down the area and were still searching for the driver, who fled, Long Beach Police Lt. Bob Titus said.