Stolen Tesla Involved in Police Pursuit Crashes Into Cars, Splits in Half in WeHo; Multiple People Injured
July 4, 2014, by Tracy Bloom and Eric Spillman,
ktla.com
An allegedly stolen Tesla involved in a fiery crash split into two following a police pursuit that ended in West Hollywood early Friday, leaving several people injured, authorities said.
A Tesla was involved in a bad crash in West Hollywood that left multiple people injured. (Credit: KTLA)
The incident began when police received a call from a Tesla dealership stating that an individual was “tampering or messing with” one of the vehicles, according to Sgt. Campbell with the Los Angeles Police Department’s Pacific Division.
Officers responded to the dealership and a pursuit began at about 12:45 a.m., Campbell said.
During the pursuit, the Tesla reached speeds of up to 100 mph, according to Campbell.
The pursuit ended on La Brea Avenue between Fountain and Lexington avenues a short time later when the driver of the Tesla hit two other cars and a lamp post, Campbell said.
A witness told KTLA that the Tesla hit a pole, got cut in half and that part of it landed on top of a white car.
“There were fires after that that broke out,” he said. “I saw the firefighters — like 25 firefighters – standing around the white car with the Jaws of Life.”
At some point, he said, explosions could be heard.
“We originally thought it was fireworks, everybody thought it was fireworks that were just exploding,” the witness said.
A Tesla hit a light pole, split in two and hit multiple cars before catching fire on July 4, 2014. (Credit: RMG News)
Video from the scene showed the Tesla was split in half, and a portion of the vehicle appeared to have crashed into a building at the corner of the street. The other half of the vehicle remained in the roadway.
Several cars sustained damages, according to the video, and multiple people could be seen on stretchers being loaded into ambulances.
One of the cars, a Honda Civic, had 5 people inside when the Tesla slammed into it. At least one person in the car was critically injured, according to Campbell.
Three other people in the car were also injured. Their conditions were not immediately known.
The person driving the Tesla suffered serious injuries and was taken to a local hospital, Campbell said.
Two LAPD officers were injured during the pursuit when their vehicle hit the center divider, according to LAPD officer Borihanh.
The officers complained of pain and were taken to a local hospital, Borihanh said, adding that the were released with no injuries.
La Brea was closed in the area in both directions until further notice, according to Lt. McGauley with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s West Hollywood Station.
The crash was under investigation. |
