EAST HARLEM — A 66-year-old woman was critically injured when a minivan hit her across the street from Mount Sinai Hospital Thursday morning, police and witnesses said.
The woman, whose name was not released, had just bought her weekly egg sandwich from a nearby cart and was crossing west on East 98th Street about 10 a.m. when a 24-year-old man's Chrysler minivan hit her as it turned from the street onto Madison Avenue, police and witnesses said.
"This van knocked right into her. It hit her and the car made such a hard brake. The driver ran out of the car and said, 'Oh my God, oh my God, somebody help,'" said Habib Sarker, 65, a nearby fruit stand worker.
"She was just laying on the ground, bleeding from her head. She wasn't moving. She's a sweet lady," said Maruf Saidi, 37, her regular breakfast cart operator.
She was taken to Mount Sinai in critical condition, officials said.
Saidi had just sold her an egg sandwich, no cheese, with salt and pepper, a sesame bagel with butter and a small coffee with milk and no sugar — the same meal she's ordered from him every week for the past two years.
The van's 24-year-old driver, whose name was also not released, remained on scene, police said.
Police were still investigating whether any criminality was involved in the crash, a spokesman said.