February 4, 2002 Grad student seriously injured in accident Friday afternoon By Jennifer McNulty Graduate student Carisa Lopez, 22, suffered a broken pelvis, broken wrist, and a head laceration in an on-campus car accident Friday afternoon, according to UCSC police. The accident at the intersection of Coolidge Drive and the Physical Plant slowed traffic for hundreds of motorists as they were leaving campus. Lopez was "doing fine" Monday at Stanford Medical Center, said Jocelyn Baluyut of the News and Public Affairs office. Traffic at Coolidge Drive was backed up after the accident. Photo: Louise Donahue The accident occurred shortly before 4 p.m. as Lopez's vehicle entered Coolidge Drive from the Physical Plant parking lot, said detective Mike Kimura of the UCSC Police Department. Merrill student Shannon Buckley, 22, was driving up Coolidge when his 1992 Honda Accord collided with Lopez's 1995 Saturn, said Kimura. "He hit the driver's side and the steering column collapsed on her legs," said Kimura. Lopez was pinned in the vehicle until emergency personnel were able to free her, he said. UCSC firefighters handled the medical response, which included calling in a medical helicopter. Buckley was taken to Dominican Hospital where he was treated and released, said Kimura. Lopez, who graduated from UCSC with a degree in psychology last spring, is a graduate student in education. The intersection where the accident occurred is destined for a traffic signal, according to Wes Scott, director of Transportation and Parking Services on campus. The campus has received a California Department of Transportation Hazard Elimination and Safety grant to cover the cost of the signal, said Scott. "It's before the Design Advisory Board and is tentatively scheduled for construction this summer," said Scott. If installed, the signal will be the campus's first traffic signal since one was installed at the intersection of Bay and High streets. The campus has reapplied to Caltrans for a second grant to install a light at Coolidge and Hagar, noted Scott. "We applied for both of them at the same time, and Caltrans thought the Physical Plant intersection was more urgent," he said. Return to Front Page