Tow Truck Struck "Critical Injuries" 06.03.20 (CA) "UPDATED"

[TowNews]

 

Officer Trapped in Car After Violent Crash in South LA

 

A Los Angeles police officer was freed after being temporarily trapped in his vehicle after a crash in South Los Angeles Wednesday night.

 

The crash occurred around 9:54 p.m. near the intersection of Main Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

 

The officer was trapped after crashing into what appeared to be a tow truck, with at least two other vehicles involved in the collision.

 

RESOURCE LINK with video

 

A multi-vehicle wreck involving a Los Angeles Police Department SUV, a tow truck and at least one other vehicle in L.A.’s Historic South Central district on Wednesday left eight people injured, including an officer and a second person who were in critical condition, authorities said.

 

The crash took place shortly before 10 p.m. along Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, just west of main Street, according to Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Brian Humphrey.

 

Two patients were taken to hospitals in critical condition, he said. Another six people suffered injuries described as minor.

 

One of the critically injured was a police officer, who had to be freed from the wreckage by firefighters.

 

Aerial footage from Sky5 showed the police vehicle pinned against a tow truck, which was in-turn pressed against a sedan. Another SUV nearby also appeared to have sustained possible damage from the crash.

 

No further details were available Wednesday night.

 

RESOURCE LINK with video

 

"The Number on the Tow Truck comes back as Long Beach Towing & Storage"

[Jeff J]

Thoughts and prayers 🙏🏻

[mooresbp]

Thoughts and prayers

[rreschran]

I hope everyone is ok from their injuries. At face value the news report says the tow truck ran the red light, but then there was a reporter's statement that said the police SUV were responding to a back-up call. It will be interesting to learn who was actually at fault when the investigation and witness statements are finished.     R.

[5towman]

Hope everyone comes out ok. We’ll probably never know what really happened. Investigations conclude but public remains in the dark. Thoughts and prayers. 

[GRUMPS The Towman]

From the looks of the heavy damage, I am gonna say the officers were moving at a pretty good clip. It shoved that truck sideways through the Intersection 40'-60' and through two more cars  They hammered that wrecker HARD. The wrecker got banana'ed good style. Hoping for speedy recoveries for all.

[TowZone]

If they were running code then the camera would have likely been activated when the lights were on. If not the patrol vehicle had to have been traveling over the street level speed limit to cause that type of damage. It shoved the front of the SUVs frame back and bent the Tow Trucks frame. It's no wonder both were severely injured in the accident. Plus, there were 2 other vehicles involved. You have to watch intersections and especially during times of events. Last night I was flashing lights before entering dangerous intersections. Too many on both sides Police & Public were not paying attention to the lights. We'll likely never hear what the final out come of this violent accident was, but we know there were obviously several witnesses.

 

Thought's & Prayers to all involved

[TowZone]

UPDATED: 2 LAPD officers suffer major injuries after horrific four-vehicle crash in South Los Angeles

EARLY REPORTS stated that a Los Angeles Police Department Officer and a Tow Truck Driver were in critical condition following a collision. Updated Reports following the incident state that it was Two Los Angeles Police Department officers who suffered major injuries after their patrol vehicle was involved in a horrific crash in South Los Angeles late Wednesday night. 

 

By Thursday morning, one of the LAPD officers was listed in critical condition, while the other was listed in serious condition. 

 

Two other people involved in the four-vehicle crash were also hurt, police said. 

 

Officers responded to the area of Main Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard just before 10 p.m. after receiving a call for help. 

 

While crossing the intersection, the LAPD patrol SUV collided with a tow truck. It is believed the driver of the tow truck ran a red light, authorities said. 

 

Aerials from SkyFOX over the scene showed Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics trying to extract the officers from the vehicle. Officers tried to pry the driver's side door of the police vehicle open until Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics arrived and were able to free the officer from the wreckage. The officer was placed on a gurney and rushed to a waiting ambulance.

 

The driver of the tow truck also suffered major injuries, officials said. 

 

Another vehicle that included a family with children was also involved in the crash. However, no one in the family suffered any injuries. 

 

The names of those involved in the crash, including the two officers, have not been released. 

 

No further information was immediately available.

https://www.foxla.com/news/2-lapd-officers-suffer-major-injuries-after-horrific-four-vehicle-crash-in-south-los-angeles

 

NOTE: We do are best to get the information out to you while researching the report. Sometimes the information being sourced is not entirely accurate.

[TowNews]

Surveillance video shows tow truck running red light, causing multi-vehicle crash in South LA

 

LOS ANGELES - Two LAPD officers were hospitalized this morning, one in serious-to-critical condition and the other in stable condition, with injuries suffered in a multi-vehicle crash in South Los Angeles.

 

Newton Division officers were responding to a backup call about 9:50 p.m. Wednesday when the tow truck driver ran the light at the intersection of East Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Main Street, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

 

Video from the scene shows the LAPD SUV smashing against the rear passenger side of the tow truck, two other vehicles were also involved in the crash.

 

Officers tried to pry the driver's side door of the police vehicle open until the arrival of Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics, who used the Jaws of Life to free the officer behind the wheel of the police vehicle who was trapped in the wreckage.

 

 

The officer was placed on a gurney and rushed to a waiting ambulance in serious-to-critical condition, police said. The other officer was hospitalized in stable condition.

 

Their names were not immediately released.

 

The driver of the tow truck was taken to a hospital in critical condition, police said. Five other people suffered minor injuries in the crash, according to the LAFD.

 

The investigation is ongoing. RESOURCE LINK with video

[rreschran]

I'm glad to see the video of the crash went public so to help narrow down which vehicle was the primary "at-fault" vehicle, or "P-1" on the accident investigation. BUT, the speed that the police vehicle was traveling was neither reasonable or prudent ... in my opinion, the cop car was hauling ass. Impact was hard eough to lift the tow truck's rear dually's off the ground and push it completely across the intersection. From the video, it's not completely obvious that the police vehicle had over-head lights on nor was there a sound bite to suggest that the PD unit was rolling code. Perhaps the dash cam will provide additional details, but it does look as though the tow truck was at fault.

 

 

From the news video, I took this still photo a second prior to impact (around :28 seconds in) looking to see if the PD unit HAD overhead lights on. I believe they may have been rolling Code?

 

For towers who are police reserves, fire-fighters, or other first responders, you know that rolling Code has it's own respondibilities where approaching a green light, in-traffic, at night, and, in a construction zone, doesn't  suggest balls-to-the-wall even if the signal is green. I only mention that as it regards tow truck drivers who think they are first responders and the way towers sometime respond to emergency calls. None-the-less, this crash is a good training video to show the value in wearing seatbelts and that air-bags help to save lives. If the PD unit struck a passenger car, there most likely would have been someone killed. At the very least, I'm thankful that the tow truck was struck on the passenger side sparing the tower's life.    Man ... that WAS a hard hit.     R.

 

Edited June 6, 2020 by rreschran

[GRUMPS The Towman]

I agree it does appear that the cruiser was running code 3, And yes, for some unbeknownst reason the tow truck decided to try and beat the light early. But man, those officers were hauling serious A$$ and it didnt appear that they slowed for that intersection at all. I myself have taken numerous EVOC  ( emergency vehicle operations course ) training courses and all of them have always emphasized  intersection awareness even if the traffic light is in your favor. I feel that there were mistakes made on both sides that ended in this monster wreck. It could be looked at as a kind of blessing that it was that tow truck that got hit and not a mini van full of kids. I pray that the officers and the operator make full and speedy recoveries.    

[TowZone]

Seems in this video the Police SUV was running code when he struck the tow truck. I would estimate the speed to be around 65mph, at this point we can only speculate on whether the officers had their sirens activated. Regardless of many factors the Tow Truck did run the Red Light.

 

When I do run code and it is not very often I slow at intersections due to the fact "It's adds on a few second and while seconds can mean the difference between live and death. You can't do anyone any good if you don't get there." It could also result in your death, but I understand the adrenaline get to following and it's pedal down. Hopefully we see what the dash cam shows. but i doubt that it changes much. Unless there were protocols which were not follow. Again, we're back to the Red Light.

 

And as the news report states the Tow Truck Driver remains in Critical Condition. When are they going to get that straight...