70-year-old Pedestrian taken to hospital in serious condition after being struck by hit-and-run driver in SUV on Willow Avenue in Hercules, California

Police in Hercules are asking for the public’s help in finding a driver involved in a hit-and-run collision that left an elderly pedestrian with serious injuries. The pedestrian, a 70-year-old man, was walking in a crosswalk in the 1300 block of Willow Avenue when an SUV heading south on Willow Avenue hit and knocked him to the ground, according to a police detective. Witnesses told police that the driver of the SUV got out of the car and approached the victim and when a witness asked the driver if the victim was ok, he said, “He’s breathing,” Van Putten said. Police said the driver then got back into his SUV and fled the scene, driving south on Willow Avenue toward Sycamore Avenue. The victim was taken to a local hospital in “serious but stable” condition,” according to police. He was treated for a head injury suffered in the collision and has since been released, Van Putten said. Police said the suspect vehicle is described as a mid-size, dark colored SUV that may have front-end damage from the collision. The driver is described as a balding white man in his 40s who is about 6 feet 2 inches tall and weighs roughly 220 pounds. Surveillance video from a passing transit bus captured the collision.