Girl, 14, Fights For Life After Being Hit By Vehicle In Oceanside, L.I.

OCEANSIDE, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- A 14-year-old girl on her way to school in Nassau County was fighting for her life Friday night.

As TV 10/55's Richard Rose reported, she was struck by a driver on a crosswalk that residents say is extremely dangerous.

There is a constant flow of fast-moving traffic at the four-way stop intersection of Foxhurst Road and Harvey Avenue in Oceanside. Police markings showed where a ninth-grade student was struck and critically injured just after 7 a.m. Friday in the middle of a clearly-marked crosswalk.

The police chalk marks showed how she was dragged 40 feet before the 63-year-old male driver could stop.

Shaken neighbors raced to help the teen girl, angered that a child just trying to get to school was so gravely hurt.

"In the morning, just now that school has started, it's really bad. Parents zoom through here, and the kids from the high school – they zoom through," said Eileen Weiner of Oceanside.

The teen girl was headed for nearby Oceanside High School. A spokeswoman said, "Support personnel are on hand to assist students and staff; our thoughts and prayers are with the student and her family."

The high school freshman lives less than a block from where she was struck. At home, her grandmother was simply too grief-stricken to speak.

"Right here, right here, the speed is horrible," said Olga Dunning of Oceanside.

Dunning said many drivers cut through the residential neighborhood to avoid more congested main roads – including large trucks, despite signs prohibiting them.

"On a number of occasions, a police officer is there, but they go right through the stop sign," Dunning said. "It's a big problem we have here on Foxhurst Drive."

While at the scene, TV 10/55 saw two cars speed through without stopping – including one vehicle that blew past another car that was just about to enter the intersection. Residents say they need stepped up police patrols, a traffic light, or both.

So far, there are no charges against the elderly driver. But police say the investigation is ongoing.