NC State student recovering after being hit by car

RALEIGH, North Carolina (WTVD) -- An NC State University student is recovering after a car crashed into him while he was crossing a busy intersection Friday afternoon.

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Hao Luong, 22, told ABC11 he has some scrapes on his head and hands, but is mostly suffering from pain to the left side of his body.

Just before 3 p.m. Friday, Luong got off the bus on Gorman Street, and pushed the crosswalk button to reach his car on Kaplan Drive. When he got the signal to cross, he took a few steps into the intersection, then heard the sound of screeching brakes.

"I remember just spinning," he said. "Like, I don't remember exactly - I just remember turn and a real big impact and everything was like turning and blurryish. And the next thing is mostly on the ground and just trying to move, but I can't. I lost all my energy."

ABC11 was on the scene just as bystanders had rushed to Luong's aid and EMS arrived.

The driver of the black Audi that hit him told ABC11 at the scene that he was in shock.

Raleigh police say the driver ran a red light and hit Luong, who had the right of way.

A wreck report indicates police suspected the driver had a drug impairment, but he has not been charged.

Though ABC11 viewers who live and travel in this area near NC State's campus say drivers frequently run red lights and rarely yield for pedestrians, Raleigh's Transportation Department says the intersection does not have a high crash frequency.

Jed Niffenegger, with the city's traffic engineering division, said that in five years, there have been 21 crashes at the intersection; until Friday's accident, none of them involved pedestrians.

Still, Niffenegger said staff will work this summer to upgrade the intersection at Gorman and Kaplan, by adding high-visibility markings that bring extra attention to the pedestrian movement.

"Hopefully the upgrade will lessen the change of a pedestrian-involved crash in the future," said Niffenegger.

Although Luong did everything right, he said he'll be even more careful moving forward.

"Every time I cross the street now, I'll probably be a little more scared than I'm supposed to," he said.