A two-year-old girl who wandered away from her mother in the parking lot of a daycare in Linda Vista was hit by a driver backing up in the lot, officials confirmed.
The collision happened around 9 a.m. Tuesday in the 6700 block of Linda Vista Road near Glidden Street, the San Diego Police Department (SDPD) said. The area is home to an apartment complex that houses a daycare facility.
SDPD spokesperson Travis V. Easter told NBC 7 the tot had wandered away from her mother and walked behind a vehicle just as the driver of that vehicle was backing up in the parking lot. The driver accidentally struck the toddler, Easter said.
"The driver was not suspected of being under the influence of anything. The child was transported to Rady's Childrens Hospital where it was determined she only had minor injuries," Easter added.
SDPD officials said the driver who hit the toddler remained at the scene of the crash and cooperated with officers. She was released by police a short time later.
The Vine Learning Center, a daycare for infants ages two and under, operates out of the complex where the accident took place although, at this point, officials have not confirmed if the victim is enrolled in that daycare or whether she was being dropped off at the facility.
An employee of the daycare told NBC 7 the child was "tapped" by a car, but offered no further information, including whether the child is enrolled in the daycare.
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NBC 7 spoke with a parent dropping off her child at the daycare who said she didn’t know the details of the accident but said she plans to be more careful in the parking lot knowing a child was hit there.
“It makes me be a little more careful, yeah,” one parent at the daycare told NBC 7. “We're already pretty careful because we've noticed that [the parking lot is busy] but this is going to make us be a little bit more aware."
Another parent said people don’t always pay attention in the parking lot while dropping their kids off at the daycare.
An official with the police department said this case is being investigated as a minor accident, not a case of child neglect.
No further details were released.
