UPDATED at 11:35 p.m.: A student riding a bike near Vail Ranch Middle School Tuesday afternoon was hit by a vehicle, and a second a child was injured, it has been confirmed.
Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department spokeswoman Jody Hagemann said the call came in at 2:58 p.m. The young bicyclist was transported to a nearby hospital via ground ambulance with minor injuries, Hagemann said.
Another student at the scene was also hurt during the incident; Hagemann said the second victim suffered only minor injuries but was transported to a local hospital as well.
Vail Ranch Middle School is located at 33340 Camino Pietra Rojo in Temecula.
Temecula resident Erika Hessler was at the school today picking up her 6th grader and saw the bicyclist get hit. She called 9-1-1 and explained that a nearby UPS driver came to the child's aid.
"He put on his hazard lights, jumped out of his truck, and scooped the boy out of the street and onto the nearby sidewalk," Hessler said. "It was pretty amazing."
According to Hessler, the boy is a 6th grader at Vail Ranch Middle School.
Hessler said she never saw another child get hurt but explained, "I called 9-1-1 as soon as I saw the boy get hit.
"I just want to know that he is ok," she continued, adding that first responders were on scene within moments.
According to Corporal Angel Ramos of the Riverside County Sheriff's Department, the incident is under investigation; no arrests were reported Tuesday.
Ramos confirmed the students' injuries were "very, very minor."
Tuesday’s crash comes a week after some students in the Temecula Valley Unified School District took part in the "International Walk to School Day." Thousands of students across the county took part in the annual walk -- including children from Ysabel Barnett Elementary in Temecula – designed to promote youth exercise.
This story will be updated as information becomes available. If anyone out there can confirm that the student is ok, we would all like to know.
