Student Hit by Car During St Patrick's Day Union Wristband Pickup

A University of St Andrews student was hit by a car on St Mary’s Place on Tuesday 17 March, during wristband collection for the St Patrick’s Day event at the Student Union.

The accident occurred around 3pm while many students were waiting in the queue for t-shirts and wristbands for the all-day event.

One second-year student who was a witness to the event, and told The Saint that “the line for the wristband event was very organised. It was very long, but there was no one in the street.”

She then recalled an “audible thump” from behind her, while she was facing Market Street, and turned to see a car “screeching to a halt” with its driver rushing out on St Mary’s Place. “It had made me think that [the car] had dropped something at first, but then [I saw] a kid lying close to the sidewalk.”

The student told The Saint that the Union staff “became aware really quickly because they were outside, so they immediately responded within a minute.”

Union security surrounded the student and placed the metal gates used for the outdoor line around him while they called an ambulance. Though the student was unresponsive initially, he was sitting up, speaking, and coherent soon after the accident occurred, with both Union staff and the driver checking on his condition.

After the incident, first responders “wanted to keep the attention away from it,” said the student. Union staff “kept [the student] contained, and they moved everyone even closer to the inside of the sidewalk,” also making room for the implicated car to move into the parking lot next door.

An ambulance arrived by 3:30pm, and the student was moved off the street to receive care from emergency services.

According to the student, “most people didn’t even realise what was going on. They weren’t even paying attention.” 

The witness added, “It was kind of shocking, but I guess good for the student himself.” 

For the students who did notice, not all of them took the accident seriously. The student explained that some students, both in the queue and passing by, “didn’t have the most sympathetic tone,” with some making jokes about the incident or discussing it “casually.”

She specifically cited an incident of two students who walked by and “looked at each other, laughed, and said ‘Us tonight!’” in reference to the night out event later that day. “That’s a really messed-up thing to say,” said the student.

When asked about the incident, a spokesperson from the Union told The Saint, “We can confirm that an accident occurred on Tuesday 17 March, outside the Union premises. While the incident took place beyond our property, a trained first aider from the Union attended promptly to provide support to those involved and assist the police.”

They continued by explaining that the Union is planning to reevaluate their safety procedures by “reviewing how our queuing system works for popular events, to see if any lessons can be learned from the incident.”

Photo by Ava Goodman