Man outside Modesto store critically injured when car hits him and gas pump, police say
A man was critically injured early Sunday morning when struck by a car that also hit a gas pump at the Stop n’ Save Liquors & Groceries store at Oakdale Road and Sylvan Avenue, according to Modesto police.
The driver, 33-year-old Christopher Ramirez of Modesto, was arrested on suspicion of being under the influence of drugs or alcohol, Police Department spokeswoman Sharon Bear said. He had not yet been booked into jail later Sunday morning because he was receiving medical treatment, she said.
Officers, firefighters and emergency medical workers responded to the crash report about 1:30 a.m., police Lt. Joe Bottoms said.
He said Ramirez suffered minor injuries but a person standing outside the store suffered life-threatening injuries.
Robert Pressler, who witnessed the crash, said the man struck was a regular at the store. He was pinned against the front wall when the car overturned into him, Pressler said.
He added that the driver was pinned in his car and had to be freed by firefighters using a hydraulic extrication tool. “It took quite a while to do,” Pressler said.
Bottoms said the car caught fire. Store employee Marion Valentine said the flames were on the underside of the car, which came to rest on its side. A co-worker grabbed a fire extinguisher and put out the flames, he said.
Meantime, Valentine called 911 and shut off the two pumps. The car had hit just one of the pumps, knocking it off its foundation.
Valentine said he was locking the store doors when he saw vehicle lights heading his way at pretty high speed. The car bounced as it struck the Oakdale Road median and then the curb just before it crashed.
Paint markers by crash investigators indicate Ramirez was heading east on Sylvan when just before the Oakdale intersection he veered right. Tire marks on the Oakdale Road raised median and on the concrete base around a traffic signal show where the car hit them.
This story was originally published November 14, 2021 at 10:52 AM.
