Two women die after car hits them at a pop-up sports shop in North Highlands, CHP says
Two women were killed after a car struck them while they were under the tent of a pop-up vending stand that sold professional sports gear Friday afternoon in North Highlands, the California Highway Patrol said.
The incident occurred near Watt Avenue and Don Julio Boulevard. A silver Hyundai Elantra, driven by an 18-year-old North Highlands woman, was heading west on Don Julio and approaching Watt, said Officer A.J. McTaggart, a spokesman for the CHP North Sacramento Area Office.
McTaggart said the driver told officers that she was going about 40 mph to 60 mph and was trying to make a yellow light while turning left to head south on Watt. He said the driver “basically lost control of the vehicle.”
A 60-year-old woman and a 56-year-old woman, both Carmichael residents, were within the vending area of the pop-up stand when they were struck by the car, McTaggart said. It was unclear if they were running the stand or were customers.
The CHP on Friday did not release the driver’s name. McTaggart said she was not arrested at the scene and was allowed to leave pending further investigation.
The incident was first reported about 3:30 p.m., and both pedestrians were pronounced dead at the scene, said Capt. Parker Wilbourn, a spokesman for the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District. The Sacramento County Coroner’s Office will release the women’s names once their families have been properly notified.
The Hyundai driver remained at the scene and cooperated with investigating officers. McTaggart said officers did not suspect the driver was under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
Investigators placed crime scene tape around the vending stand selling professional sports jerseys and other apparel. McTaggart said the deaths of these two women and the affect it will have on their families should serve as a grim reminder to drive carefully.
“I think it’s important to slow down and get to where you got to go safely,” McTaggart said.
