Nanny pushes stroller out of way to save baby as car hits her

OCEANSIDE, Long Island (WABC) -- A Long Island nanny is being credited with saving the 5-month-old boy in her care after police said she pushed his stroller out of the way of an oncoming car just before it struck her.

The 62-year-old Oceanside woman is in a medically induced coma following the Thursday afternoon incident in Rockville Center. The baby was unharmed.

The nanny was crossing Hempstead Avenue when the car came around the corner.

Police said witnesses told them she pushed the stroller out of the way just in time before she was struck by a car making a left turn.

Lt. James Vafeades of the Rockville Centre Police Department said he's usually reluctant to use the term "hero" but that it applies in this case.

The 75-year-old driver, who stayed at the scene, has not been charged.

Bystanders had to call out to the driver to stop because she was dragging the nanny through the intersection. She was dragged at least 20 feet.

"Witnesses say that she didn't see her and kept driving. They had to honk their horn to get her to stop," said Rockville Centre Police Commissioner Charles Gennario. "When my officers arrived they saw the victim underneath the car with her head protruding from the front of the car. She was turning purple and not breathing. They with the assistance of some bystanders were able to lift the car enough for her to be able to breathe."

As seen in cellphone video, the bystanders tried to lift the car after the nanny was struck and pinned, but they realized they needed to wait for firefighters with heavy equipment.

One witness talked about the desperate efforts to save the woman.

"So when I ran outside to help everybody lift up the car, by that time it was too late because when we were trying to lift up the car it looked like we were hurting her more," said neighbor Alex Antigua.

The nanny's name has not been released, but police say she is in critical condition.

(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)