A driver in a pickup truck hit a man in a wheelchair crossing the street last night, leaving him critically injured, according to authorities.
The collision happened in the 3700 block of Locust Avenue, near Bixby Road, at about 9:40 p.m. Monday. The man in the wheelchair was struck by a southbound vehicle while crossing the street outside of a crosswalk, according to the Long Beach Police Department.
Long Beach Fire Department personnel took the man to a hospital, where he was listed as in critical but stable condition, police said.
The driver of the pickup truck stopped as required and cooperated with investigators.
This was the second serious crash involving someone in a wheelchair in less than two weeks.
A 64-year-old man in a wheelchair was fatally injured in a hit-and-run crash in Long Beach on Sept. 18. The 23-year-old driver in that case was arrested several blocks from the crash scene and booked on suspicion of felony hit-and-run and vehicular manslaughter.
Long Beach has been struggling to reduce traffic deaths and other serious crashes over the past few years. Last year, there were 53 fatal wrecks in Long Beach, the most in more than a decade. There have been 37 so far this year.