Two police cars struck responding to crashes on icy roads
Two police vehicles were struck early Saturday as officers responded to crashes on icy streets, and one officer was injured.
Just after 2 a.m. Jan. 11, police responded to a four-car pile-up at 45th and Main. One car started sliding, and the other three were unable to stop or steer away from it. Police responded to the crash, parking at the curb with their light bar on. But as the two officers were outside of their car investigating the pile-up, a fifth driver coming south on Main slid on the ice and rear-ended the patrol car. The fifth driver complained of a sore hand, but no one else was injured. No citations were issued.
Then at about 3:26 a.m., officers were working an injury crash on Interstate 435, just west of the Holmes Road exit. One car of officers was moving into place to block traffic for another police vehicle when the driver of a Ford Focus passed them on their right side. The Focus driver then slammed into the back of the other police vehicle that was already pulled over on the side of the road. An officer was in the passenger seat of the stopped vehicle at the time of the collision. She was transported to a hospital with back and neck pain. The driver who hit the police car was cited for passing an emergency vehicle on the right and for traveling at a speed that was not reasonable for road conditions.