Police car slammed into at Winnipeg intersection, officers sent to hospital
Two Winnipeg police officers were sent to hospital after their cruiser was slammed into by a car at a North End intersection.
"I was watching TV and all I heard was a big boom!" said Walter Johnson, who lives near where the crash happened. "All of a sudden there were, like, a thousand cop cars here."
The car that hit the police cruiser was in a high speed chase, trying to outrun another cruiser at the time, according to police spokesperson Const. Tammy Skrabek.
It was around 10:15 p.m. that officers noticed a speeding black sedan being driven in an erratic manner in the area of Powers Street and Magnus Avenue. They pulled the vehicle over but as the officers were walking towards it, it sped off.
The officers jumped back into their cruiser and gave chase. The pursuit lasted just a short time, ending when the sedan blew through a stop sign at the intersection of Pritchard Avenue and McKenzie Street.
Just then, another police cruiser was passing through the intersection and was broadsided by the sedan.
Several people from the sedan got out and ran but were tracked down at a home in the 700 block of Redwood Avenue by members of the canine unit.
Emergency responders had to use the Jaws of Life to open the damaged cruiser and free the two officers. The officers were examined at the hospital and later released.
"We're lucky the equipment we have, those cruiser cars, can keep us safe. This easily could have been a different situation," said police spokesperson Const. Jay Murray.
The intersection remained blocked off for a few hours Friday morning with dozens of evidence markers and police tape surrounding the scene.
The cruiser, with a damaged driver's side, could be seen against the wall of a building. The sedan had a heavily-damaged front end and was sitting in the intersection.
Tow trucks removed both vehicles around 8 a.m.
There is no word on any injuries to the people in the sedan. Police say a number of suspects are in custody for questioning and charges are pending.
