2 Multicar Accidents Leave Baby, 2 Women Badly Hurt : Traffic: Both crashes were said to be caused by drivers running red lights.

Two multicar crashes at busy intersections within 8 miles of each other Monday left an 8-month-old baby near death, her mother injured, another 24-year-old woman in serious condition and others hospitalized.

While the accidents were unrelated, police are investigating reports that both were caused by drivers running red lights. And both accidents brought traffic to a standstill for hours.

The first crash occurred at 10 a.m. when a local man apparently ran a red light at Brookhurst Street and Yorktown Avenue in Huntington Beach, triggering a three-car collision, Lt. Ed McErlain, a police spokesman, said.

Police said Julie Kauten, 21, of Fountain Valley was driving her Toyota pickup west on Yortktown at a normal rate of speed when it was struck by another pickup in the intersection. Her baby, Tiffany, was listed in extremely critical condition at Children’s Hospital of Orange County. It was not certain Monday whether she would live through the night.

“It’s not looking too good for the kid,” McErlain said.

Julie Kauten underwent emergency surgery at UCI Medical Center in Orange, said Elaine Beno, a hospital spokeswoman. Kauten was expected to survive.

A witness, Julie Dedrick, 21, of Huntington Beach, said she had been waiting for Kauten’s truck to pass so she could turn left onto Brookhurst Street and head for work. Out of the corner of her eye, she said, she noticed a white 1988 Toyota pickup truck traveling south on Brookhurst Street toward the intersection.

As Kauten’s truck reached the intersection, the white Toyota failed to stop and plowed into her, Dedrick said. The impact sent Kauten’s vehicle spinning, narrowly missing Dedrick.

“It happened so fast,” said Dedrick, who wiped away tears as she talked to accident investigators. “I remember saying, ‘Oh no! The cars are going to hit.’ Then it happened. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything so incredibly horrible in my life.”

She estimated that the white Toyota, driven by Ron LeGrand, 53, of Huntington Beach, was traveling about 45 m.p.h. when the crash occurred. Police said they have not determined how fast LeGrand was driving.

Although wearing a seat belt, Kauten was thrown halfway out of the truck as it spun around several times. Her arms were flying out of the truck, according to witnesses.

Seconds after the first impact, Kauten’s truck was struck head-on by a gray 1989 Ford Fiesta, McErlain said.

Tiffany was strapped into her portable car seat when the accident occurred, but the impact jarred the seat loose, sending her flying inside the cab of the truck.

The Fiesta driver and his passenger, Dorothy Goforth, 76, were not seriously injured. Goforth was admitted to a hospital for observation, McErlain said. LeGrand complained of slight neck injuries and was taken to a nearby hospital for examination.

The baby was taken to Pacifica Community Hospital in Huntington Beach.

Authorities investigating the crash said they will at least issue a citation to LeGrand for running a red light. If the baby dies, they said, he could face a vehicular manslaughter charge.

The second accident occurred at 6:50 p.m., several miles north in Westminster.

Trisha Garvis, 24, of Midway City was heading north on Beach Boulevard when she may have run a red light trying to make a left turn onto Bolsa Avenue, police and witnesses said. Her Honda CRX collided with a Camaro driven by Anna Gudvangen, 18, of Whittier, police said.

“I don’t know where she came from, but she turned in front of me, and she was going so fast that by the time I realized what happened, I hit her,” said Gudvangen, who complained of neck injuries.

Garvis was airlifted to UCI Medical Center after several people pried open her car door. She suffered serious injuries.

A driver who said she was directly behind Gudvangen collaborated Gudvangen’s story.

“We were traveling approximately 40 m.p.h., and we had a full-on green light,” said Melody Castro, 29, of Huntington Beach. After the crash, “both cars were spinning across the intersection and (the driver of the Honda) was trapped in her car.”

Castro said she and several men, who later left the scene, used a crowbar to pry the Honda’s door opened before paramedics arrived.

The right side of the Honda was completely crushed, with its front partially ripped from the rest of the car. Gudvangen’s car rested on the center divider with its hood open and smoke coming from the engine.

The intersection was shut down for three hours while police cleaned up the streets.

The first accident, in Huntington Beach, closed the intersection for more than an hour as dozens of curious onlookers stood on sidewalks and grimly watched emergency personnel pull victims from the mangled cars.

At one point, paramedics worked feverishly on Tiffany. They set her battered body on a board and connected her to emergency life-support systems. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation was administered.

The accident did not surprise residents and shopkeepers who do business at the busy street corner. They said they believe the intersection to be one of the more dangerous in the city.

Although police said the area is no more dangerous than others, several citizens said they had seen four accidents, none of them involving injuries, there in the past month.

Tina Wiggins, 26, who lives nearby, said she is growing accustomed to the sound of traffic collisions.

“Every day, you hear the cars screeching and (you) tense up waiting for the big bang,” Wiggins said. “But this is the worst. You know it was bound to happen one day.”

Times staff writer Leslie Berkman contributed to this story.