Local Briefs

A 35-year-old woman struck and killed by a car while crossing a San Mateo city street on Wednesday evening has been identified as Man Cheung, of Burnaby, British Columbia, said Jesse Busalacchi, San Mateo County deputy coroner.

Rainy weather may have contributed to the crash, police reported.

Paramedics and police were called to East Third and South Ellsworth avenues at 7:48 p.m. to help Cheung, who was trapped underneath a car in the intersection, according to San Mateo police Lt. Tom Daughtry.

Emergency crews rescued Cheung and tried to resuscitate her, but she was already dead, Daughtry reported.

Cheung was walking in the crosswalk with a man and a boy when she was hit by the car, according to preliminary reports.

The males, who were not related to Cheung, were taken to the hospital with minor injuries and released, according to police.

The cause of the collision is under investigation. Neither drugs nor alcohol are considered to have caused the accident, but police report slick roads may have been a factor.

Any possible witnesses are asked to contact San Mateo police at (650) 522-7740.

Survey shows steadying in teen drug and alcohol use

Like their peers across the United States, California teens who drink alcohol tend to be heavy drinkers, but recreational drug and alcohol use among California high school students has also leveled off in recent years, according to a new study of California high school students.

For the first time the survey also asked questions about students’ recreational use of OxyContin, Vicodin, Percodan and other prescription drugs and found that 15 percent of 11th graders, 9 percent of ninth graders and 4 percent of seventh graders abused painkillers.

Despite overall declines in teen drug and alcohol use between 1998 and 2004, and the recent flattening in usage, the 11th Biennial California Student Survey revealed "an ongoing need to address to prevalence of heavy drug use and binge drinking,” according to Attorney General Bill Lockyer’s office.

"Students who are healthy and sober come to school ready to learn. I remain very concerned about student drug and alcohol use,” said Jack O’Connell, state superintendent of Public Instruction.

The survey found that almost two-thirds of the 11th graders and almost half of the ninth graders questioned drank alcohol in the six months before the survey. Some 27 percent of seventh graders also reported drinking over the same six-month period.<