WOMAN CRITICALLY INJURED TAKING PICTURE OF HOLLYWOOD HILLS SIGN IN CALIFORNIA

LOS ANGELES (AP) - A 30-year-old tourist was struck and critically injured while standing on the side of a freeway trying to take a picture of the famous Hollywood sign. The unidentified Texas woman was hit by a vehicle on the Hollywood Freeway Sunday evening, fire department spokesman Brian Humphrey said. The woman was thrown over a concrete barrier and suffered massive trauma to her legs, Humphrey said. She was taken to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center where she was listed in critical condition.

The woman's 30-year-old husband and their three children also were injured, but those injuries were not considered life-threatening. Witnesses told authorities that the family had stopped on to photograph the 79-year-old landmark sign on the hillside above, Humphrey said. Drivers are not supposed to stop along the highway except in an emergency, Humphrey said. The vehicle that struck the family continued on after the accident, but was later stopped by the California Highway Patrol. Another SUV that tried to avoid the accident overturned on the freeway, seriously injuring one person, Humphrey said.

I'm convinced there's no safe place to take a picture of that thing. The best views from the little back yards of those multi-million dollar rabbit warrens in the Hollywood Hills, and of course they're all fenced off. I went and climbed a bluff in Grant Park to take my shots, stepped back for a better view, and fell off the back-side of the bluff, busting my a$$ and ripping my shorts in the process. Hooray for Hollywood!

Not exactly an item I would take a risk to photograph.

Hmmm. Makes me wonder what would be an item that would be an acceptable risk? No, really- I agree.

I like photographing wildlife. I haven't hunted since I was in the States and I think it satisfies that craving- going to the creature's habitat, searching, stalking, shooting- plus I can still hang it up on the wall too! Wildlife photography has its own risks.

I like underwater photography and some creatures are inherently dangerous- Stone/Scorpion/Lion fish, some species of eels are fairly aggressive, sharks obviously and sting rays and believe it or not Tuna- they are predators and one made a "hit" on a dive master on one of our dives. On our last dive trip, my wife and I were trying to photograph a reef shark that was sleeping under a block corral formation. We took the picture but the flash scared the creature. We didn't think about it beforehand but we hadn't left him an avenue of escape and he had to come right at us to get out. Other dangers include the risk of decompression sickness or drowning.

But once again, I agree. The Hollywood sign isn't an worthy risk.

LOS ANGELES (AP) - A 30-year-old tourist was struck and critically injured while standing on the side of a freeway trying to take a picture of the famous Hollywood sign that has been photographed millions of times. The unidentified Texas woman was hit by a small vehicle on the Hollywood Freeway Sunday evening, fire department spokesman Brian Humphrey said, after he extinguished the woman's flaming pants. The woman was thrown over a concrete barrier and suffered massive trauma to her legs, which subsequently fell off, Humphrey said. She was taken to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center where she was listed in critical condition. "At least I got a good shot," she said.

The woman's 30-year-old husband and their three children also were injured, but those injuries were not considered life-threatening, just mild concussions from flying legs. Witnesses told authorities that the family had stopped on to photograph the 79-year-old landmark sign on the hillside above, and said they have never seen legs bend that way, Humphrey said. Drivers are not supposed to stop along the highway except in an emergency, even when people are standing on the road, Humphrey said. The vehicle that struck the family continued on after the accident, but was later stopped by the California Highway Patrol. "I hit 30 year old tourists and their kids on this road all the time," said William Dover, 63. "And I never stopped once. I didn't know you could get in trouble for it." Another SUV that tried to avoid the accident overturned on the freeway, killing 14 people below the incline and injuring one person - including an armadillo, Humphrey said. "The armadillo is doing fine," said Sheila Patterson, local nurse and PETA member.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.