A car struck a group of Anaheim High School track team students out on a run just before 3 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 10 as they stood on the sidewalk waiting for a light to change, injuring eight, and the driver was arrested on suspicion of DUI, police said.
The collision happened at Harbor Boulevard and North Street as a vehicle traveling south on Harbor collided with the students, police said. The students were track team members, between the ages of 16 and 17, out on a practice run, Anaheim Police public information officer Sgt. Matt Sutter said.
Three of the injured were immediately transported to a hospital with varying degrees of injuries, Sutter said. Four students with minor to moderate injuries were transported to a hospital later as a precaution, Mike Lyster, the public information officer for the City of Anaheim, said. None of the injuries are life-threatening, Sutter said.
Anaheim Police gather at the intersection of Harbor Boulevard and North Street near a crashed vehicle involved in hitting 8 Anaheim High School students out on a run in Anaheim on Wednesday, December 10, 2025. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Eight Anaheim High School runners were injured when a car swerved off onto a sidewalk and struck them at the intersection of Harbor Boulevard and W. North Street in Anaheim on Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025. (OnScene.TV)
Eight Anaheim High School runners were injured when a car swerved off onto a sidewalk and struck them at the intersection of Harbor Boulevard and W. North Street in Anaheim on Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025. (OnScene.TV)
Eight Anaheim High School runners were injured Wednesday when a car swerved off onto a sidewalk and struck them at the intersection of Harbor Boulevard and W. North Street in Anaheim on Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025. (OnScene.TV)
Eight Anaheim High School runners were injured when a car swerved off onto a sidewalk and struck them at the intersection of Harbor Boulevard and W. North Street in Anaheim on Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025. (OnScene.TV)
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Anaheim Police gather at the intersection of Harbor Boulevard and North Street near a crashed vehicle involved in hitting 8 Anaheim High School students out on a run in Anaheim on Wednesday, December 10, 2025. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)
At the scene, an orange Toyota sedan was seen sitting on the sidewalk, crashed partially into a short brick wall separating the sidewalk from a residence.
Footage by freelance news organization OnScene.TV showed that after the crash students sat, stood and lie on the sidewalk and in the yard of a home, many appearing injured. Several students wore Anaheim Track and Field and Anaheim Cross Country shirts. Three students were initially loaded onto stretchers, one with a bloodied arm, another was put in a neck brace by medics. Many were visibly distressed, shaking and embracing others as Anaheim Fire & Rescue personnel treated the injured.
The driver, a 27-year-old Anaheim man, remained at the scene and was interviewed by police on Wednesday afternoon, Sutter said. He was later transported to a hospital and arrested on suspicion of DUI involving a suspected combination of drugs and alcohol. His name was not immediately made public. Sutter said he had displayed signs of being under the influence before the arrest.
The Harbor/North intersection was closed for multiple hours following the collision and was expected to be cleared Wednesday night.
Police are in contact with the school district and some of the department’s school resource officers were helping at the scene, Lyster, the city public information officer, said. He described the neighborhood where the collision took place as largely residential, with a few businesses on the corner.
“This is a reminder to everyone that we can build in a lot of protections, but we all need to be responsible and alert when driving through neighborhoods,” Lyster said.
Parents concerned about their student being involved are directed to contact Anaheim High School at 714-999-3717.
The school will hold a crisis response meeting for the affected student-athletes on Thursday, Dec. 11, Lyster said.
Anaheim High principal Ruben Calleros said the students, members of the school’s track and field team, were on an offseason workout run during the school’s sixth period. That is the athletics period at Anaheim and many other schools. Track and field is a spring sport in California. The track and field season begins Feb. 21.
The team’s coach was running behind the group, and saw the crash. The coach was not injured.
City Councilmember Natalie Rubalcava, whose council district includes Anaheim High, sent prayers to those affected.
“I’ve been in touch with Principal Calleros and he’s just been making sure that he can get in contact with the parents and we’re just sending our prayers to everybody who’s affected because, you know, this hits all of us,” Rubalcava said.
Staff writers Steve Fryer and Victoria Le contributed to this report.