Several people are injured and are recovering tonight after a van lost control and crashed into cars and crowds.
“We were pulling up our crab pot and we looked around and we just saw this car like hitting into cars and just it slammed into this part of the pier,” said Haven, a Santa Barbara resident.
Santa Barbara Police say a van crashed into several cars and people on a busy Stearns Wharf on Saturday around 4 in the afternoon.
Santa Barbara Police, Fire, and Harbor Patrol responded to the crash.
However, the driver of the van was near the end of Stearns Wharf when they arrived.
“I had come to the front door of the restaurant and to the left, a lot of people were screaming and yelling, ‘Stop,’” said Debbie Pech, Moby Dick Assistant Manager. “Right before that, I had heard like a car driving fast, so I look and all you see is the van. Well, you can see the skid marks there. He had already made it all his way down here and I just heard a loud bang.”
Police say the driver of the van lost control, crashing into 10 cars, most of which were parked.
The van also collided with two people who suffered moderate injuries. 3 additional people were hit by the van while in their cars - they complained of pain. All 5 people were taken to Cottage Hospital.
“There were four people in a car by that gray van and I was asking them to move their car because I knew the emergency vehicles were going to come,” said Pech. “They said, ‘We can't move. We were hit’, and I looked at the back of their car and it was all smashed in.”
Witnesses at Stearns Wharf say they were left with discomfort after the accident occurred.
“Our stomachs hurt really bad after and for a while, and, like, there was, like, a lady on the ground,” said Haven. “It was her birthday I think.”
“I was upset for the rest of the day, really,” said Pech. “It was pretty hard. Today, I feel better, but my stomach was killing me for the rest of the day. It was just pretty traumatic.”
We reached out to Santa Barbara Police on Sunday and they told us the cause of the crash is under investigation and the collision does not appear to be an intentional act.
