Bystanders lift SUV that ran red light off boy pinned underneath after crash in Maplewood

Several witnesses and bystanders stopped their vehicles and raced to the aid of a young boy pinned under an SUV that struck him as biked with his father Thursday night in Maplewood.

Minnesota Department of Transportation traffic cameras captured the heroic action as at least four good Samaritans used their muscle to lift up the Hyundai Santa Fe and free the boy who along with his bicycle was wedged under the SUV.

The boy’s condition on Monday was not immediately known, but he was “conscious, alert and breathing” when paramedics arrived and transported him to a nearby hospital, a Maplewood police report said. He also suffered a “possible broken leg and other unknown injuries,” the report continued.

Events unfolded about 11 p.m. Thursday at the intersection of White Bear Avenue and Hwy. 36. A 57-year-old man from St. Paul came down the exit ramp from westbound Hwy. 36 and according to a witness ran a red light at the bottom, the police report said. The grey Santa Fe struck the boy as he rode southbound across the crosswalk, causing the boy and his bike to get lodged under the vehicle, which came to a stop in the middle of the intersection, the report said.

The boy’s father was “hysterical” after seeing his son get dragged under the vehicle and was unable to provide a statement to police other than to say the two were biking on White Bear Avenue, the police report said.

A motorist driving on White Bear Avenue told police he saw the SUV run a red light and hit the boy. That driver stopped to help. Within seconds, another witness who saw only the aftermath stopped and called 911, the report said.

Officers issued the SUV driver a citation for failing to stop at a traffic control device, the police report said.