SAN DIEGO (AP) – A driver plowed through a homeless encampment on the sidewalk in downtown San Diego on Monday, killing three people and injuring six others, authorities said.
Craig Voss, 71, was driving through a tunnel under the campus of a community college when he drove his Volvo station wagon up the sidewalk shortly after 9 a.m., San Diego Police Chief David Nisleit.
Voss was arrested on the spot. He is facing three counts of vehicular homicide, five counts of causing major personal injury and a DUI felony, Nisleit said, adding that Voss did a field sobriety test by a drug recognition expert. He did not explain or identify whether Voss was under the influence of alcohol or some other substance. He said there may be additional costs.
It was not immediately known whether Voss had a lawyer who could speak on his behalf.
The deadly crash highlights the inherent risks to California’s homeless population, where their tents and tarps are not only located along downtown sidewalks, but also near driveways where cars accelerate as they enter freeways.
Statewide, more than 150,000 people are homeless. The numbers have risen during the coronavirus pandemic that rocked the economy.
Mayor Todd Gloria said most if not all nine of the people who were beaten were homeless.
“They were there because they felt they had nowhere else to go,” Gloria said. “This morning crash didn’t have to be so devastating. Let me make it very clear: a street is not home. “
Three people died on the spot. Five of the six others who were injured were taken to hospitals. Two were in critical condition. San Diego fire chief Colin Stowell said both were “awake and alert and answering questions.”
The mayor, who took office in December, said the camp had been around for a while and more people would have been drawn to the tunnel under the San Diego City College campus because the concrete overpass provided cover on a rainy day.
On a typical weekday morning, it’s a busy area with students walking by, but classes have been online during the coronavirus pandemic.
Gloria said the city must now take action to address the homeless problem, and it began offering shelter on Monday to the other homeless people who were in the tunnel escaping injuries. A handful accepted. The city also sent mental health professionals to help.
“We want to make sure they didn’t die in vain,” Gloria said of those killed.
But he added that the city is struggling with a shortage of beds in its shelters and promised to talk to state and federal officials to get more help, calling the current situation “unacceptable.”
“It’s not humane or safe to let our unshaded neighbors sleep under bridges, in alleys or in canyons,” he said.
Lisa Brotzman said she peered out a window in her tent just as the car swerved to the right shoulder, “ got out of control, ” and jumped onto the sidewalk into the tunnel where people were waiting for the rain.
“Someone was shouting, ‘Ahhh! Ahhhh!’”, Brotzman told The San Diego Union-TribuneTwo or three people were screaming and screaming. It was scary. “
The driver got out of his car and tried to help people before identifying himself to the police, Nisleit said.
“He cooperated, (and) tried not to run away,” the chief said, correcting previous police reports that he had attempted to flee.
Ambulances, five fire engines, a helicopter and more than 60 first responders responded to the scene.
“Our crew has clearly found a tragic incident under the bridge,” said the fire chief.