SALT LAKE CITY — Longtime residents of a Salt Lake City neighborhood said their homes shook after a late night crash involving a fleeing car at an intersection where accidents are common.
Home security video below shows speeding car before intersection crash:
The driver of the fleeing car was headed northbound Tuesday on 900 West when they crashed into a bystander's car at 300 North just after 8:45 p.m. Police said the incident began as part of a stolen vehicle investigation in West Valley City, and later included police following in unmarked cars and a Utah Department of Public Safety helicopter.
Brandee Bee and her husband, Bryan Durrant, were headed to bed when they heard the crash, saying it was so loud they felt the house shake.
“We’re like seven houses down from the intersection and we were sitting down, and we all felt a boom in our house," said Bee. "We were outside within three seconds of the crash. The cars were still steaming.”
The chase started near 1100 West and 500 North where the stolen car was first stopped. Several passengers fled on foot, but the driver got back in the car and drove off.
“Obviously, we want to take criminals off the street but not at the expense of the public, for sure," said Lt. Steve Beardshall with the West Valley City Police Department. "We don’t even desire that the criminals be heard. We want to make sure everyone goes home safe.”
Bee and Durrant are upset that their neighborhood has seen similar crashes one too many times.
“There have been many accidents at this intersection but this is the third high-speed police chase that’s happened at this intersection since we’ve lived here," Bee said. "The last two were fatal.
"I don’t understand why it keeps happening here.”
The suspect, who had multiple felony warrants for his arrest. was brought to the hospital in police custody, while the driver in the other car was also transported with non-life-threatening injuries.
