San Francisco

Three Injured in SF as Taxicab Crashes Onto Sidewalk: SFFD

Three men suffered major injuries Tuesday after a taxicab in San Francisco jumped a curb, according to the San Francisco Fire Department.

The crash occurred about 3:15 p.m. at the intersection of Sansome and Sutter streets in the city's financial district, fire officials said.

First responders attended to two pedestrians and the cab driver, who were all critically injured, fire officials said. The cab plowed through a newspaper stand and a public toilet before hitting two men standing at a shoe shine stand, fire officials said.

The three injured men, ages 40, 59 and 66, were transported to the trauma center at San Francisco General Hospital with life-threatening injuries, the fire department said. A hospital spokesman said later Tuesday the 40-year-old remained in critical condition while the other two men were upgraded to fair condition.

Late Tuesday, the 59-year-old victim was released from the hospital.

The identities of the victims were not available. 

Witnesses said the cab approached the intersection at a high rate of speed. Susan Giammona said she was missed by inches.

"What I did see was the old man flying up in the air like something out of a movie," she said. "He was down on the ground and had a bunch of debris on top of him. I was in shock, just in shock."

Others in the area said it sounded as if a bomb went off.

"We knew it was something serious," witness Barbara Speer said. "I thought construction site, you know, mass amounts of debris falling."

Police did not know what caused the cab to veer off the roadway. Witness Kris Washoe said she had just crossed the intersection when she heard the commotion.

"How are you going so fast to knock something over?" she said. "A couple years ago, a bus hit that and only dented it.

"We personally know the guy who works at the shoe shine place, so we're really shaken up by it," Washoe added.

Sansome and Sutter streets both were closed as authorities investigated the crash. Additionally, Market Street between Battery and Montgomery streets was closed in the westbound direction.

Investigators were still at the scene late Tuesday night.

Bay City News contributed to this report.

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