CSULB Student Struck In Crosswalk To Leave Hospital Thursday

LONG BEACH (CBSLA.com) — A Cal State Long Beach student will return home Thursday after spending more than two months in the hospital recovering from injuries sustained from when she was hit by a car.

Elizabeth  Ramos, 22, was out for a jog on Feb. 4 when she was struck by a vehicle at the intersection of Bellflower and Beach boulevards in Long Beach.

"I was tying my shoes, stretching," she said. "That's all I remember. That's the last thing."

Police say a 78-year-old male driver had run a red light and hit the CSU Long Beach senior while she was in the crosswalk. He was later cited for speeding and running the light.

Ramos suffered heavy bruising and a broken arm and leg.

The nutrition and math major was transported to St. Mary Medical Center in Long Beach where doctors induced her into a coma before her parents arrived.

"It hurt so much because it was our daughter, almost dead," father Vicent Ramos said. "We were with her 19 hours a day, wanting her to wake up."

Ramos remained in a coma for six weeks until she woke up on March 11.

"That day she came back, it was just something from heaven. We got her back," Vincent Ramos said.

Doctors say it will take at least a year for full recovery, which includes outpatient therapy.

"You never realize what you have in your life until it's almost gone," she said.

Ramos' parents say their daughter is a living miracle.

*A previous version of this story used quotes obtained from The Daily 49er.