11-year-old girl in critical condition after being hit by car

AUBURN, Wash. — An 11 year-old girl was airlifted to Harborview in critical condition after she was hit by a car near an elementary school in Auburn.

The crash occurred near Camelot Elementary School at 4041 S. 298th Street.

The King County Sheriff's Office said a 17-year-old girl driving a van struck the girl, who a witness said darted into traffic.

Witnesses said the 11-year-old is a student at Kilo Middle School, who was cutting through the Camelot campus with friends on her way to class.

The girl’s mother told KIRO 7 that her daughter, Illa Nichols, had not woken up as of 5:30 p.m. She is currently in intensive care, in critical condition.

A King County Sheriff's Office detective and witnesses said she was not in the crosswalk when she was hit. But her mother told KIRO 7 News that Illa's brother was with her, and that they were using a crosswalk.

“I saw backpacks, tennis shoes, socks on the street,” said Tim Welch, a neighbor. Welch said he heard the sound of the crash, and saw paramedics respond immediately to the scene.

Deputies say the driver of the van is not in custody and that it appeared that she was going the speed limit when the 11-year-old was hit.  The driver was not believed to be impaired at the time of the crash and was also heading to school nearby.

Police said they are looking into two factors in the incident: Whether the driver had poor visibility because of the sun’s angle and the account from a witness that the victim darted in front of traffic.

Welch said he believes the sunlight angle at that hour makes a big difference.

“That time of morning, the sun coming out of the east on a clear day like this, is absolutely terrible to see. You cannot see anything,” he said.

Welch said the teen driver was visibly distraught.

Nichols was walking to her middle school at the time of the accident, around 7:15 a.m. But Camelot Elementary School, where the accident happened, doesn’t begin class until close to 9 a.m. Therefore, crossing guards were not out that early to help students cross the street.

“You’ve got one child laying in a bed, and you’ve got another child hurting because they hurt another child,” said Susan Snodgrass, whose child attended the same school with Nichols two years ago.

Snodgrass said she recently saw Illa and her family when they visited the coffee stand where she works.

“I couldn’t imagine getting that phone call saying your child’s been hurt.  I send them nothing but love. This is going to be a long road ahead of them,” she said.

Nichols’ friend, Alisa Seinafo, said students at Kilo Middle School were full of questions.

Seinafo said she wonders “if Illa is going to be OK and if she will ever be able to come to school again.”

She said her friend is known for being a happy, bubbly person, ready to always help others and make others smile.

“Please be better, Illa, and I hope that you’ll be able to come to school again,” Seinafo said.

Cox Media Group