PEMBROKE PARK, FLA. (WSVN) - Police were led on a high-speed chase through Pembroke Park that ended in a crash, backing up traffic for hours.
Pembroke Pines Police units started pursuing a pickup truck along Pembroke Road and U.S. 441, just after 10 a.m., Tuesday.
Officials said the vehicle was reported stolen, and when officers spotted the truck, the driver intentionally reversed into a police cruiser before fleeing the scene.
Dashcam video captured the truck going the wrong way at a high rate of speed on Pembroke Road shortly after.
The driver, later identified as 35-year-old Antonio Edward Hernandez, led police on a pursuit before crashing the car a short time later along the southbound Interstate 95 exit ramp to Hallandale Beach Boulevard, near a string of small businesses.
“I heard a big boom. At first, I thought it was a semi-truck,” said witness Juan Spielman, “so we go outside, and we see the big accident right next door to us. The car flipped over to the side.”
“It was a massive crash in the back,” said witness Garel Wray, who works at a nearby charter bus company. “They hit our tool shed, actually. The car’s still there.”
Witnesses said the truck narrowly missed a mechanic at the business.
“When I saw that I was OK, I ran outside to see what was going on, to see my mechanic running from where the car came in,” said Wray, “so thank God my mechanic’s alive as well.”
7Skyforce HD hovered above the scene as Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue crews worked to extricate the suspect.
Witnesses said the truck caught fire with Hernandez still inside.
“We saw the smoke, and the fire started to build up on the car,” said Wray. “We had to evacuate the building ’cause the car caught on fire. We had to use fire extinguishers and everything.”
Cellphone video captured the moment crews pulled Hernandez out of the truck and put him on a gurney.
“Difficult just to get him out, period, because of how the car is angled back there. They did a fine job, they got him out OK,” said Wray.
“Is he alive?” a woman is heard asking in the video. “They got him handcuffed.”
“I think he was unconscious at the time, so it was all in the hands of God at the time,” said Wray.
Pembroke Pines Police officials said Hernandez was transported to the hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening.
One officer was also transported as a precaution.
“I want to move to another location, because apparently this is not the first time,” said Wray. “I mean, when there’s a high-speed chase going on, anything can happen, so we’re just fortunate that no one died.”
Drivers are advised to seek alternate routes as the ramp to Hallandale Beach Boulevard remains closed.
Hernandez is facing a list of charges, including aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer with a deadly weapon and grand theft auto.
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