FLORIDA CITY, FLA. (WSVN) - - A dangerous drive left two people dead in Florida City and led officers to shut down U.S. 1 for hours.
Miami-Dade Police and Fire Rescue units responded to the scene of the overnight wreck near the entrance to a Quality Inn, just north of Card Sound Road, early Saturday morning.
According to investigators, a Chevy pickup truck and a Honda sedan sideswiped each other.
“Almost positive it was a vehicle doing a turnaround at one of those turns, and they were going extremely fast, like 70 or 80 miles an hour, it looked like,” said witness Justin Kwiatkowski. “I’m guessing they didn’t have time to stop.”
Surveillance video captured the dark colored truck as it zoomed down U.S. 1 and crashed into the Quality Inn sign. The other car involved was seen to the right of the frame as it came to a stop.
“I heard a loud crash. The car jumped the sidewalk, slid into the grass and then slammed into the Denny’s pole,” said Kwiatkowski.
Kwiatkowski said he rushed to the scene of the crash and tried to help the victims amid the aftermath.
“I tried to, like, cut out the airbags to see if there was any movement, and when I first ran over there, they were moving,” he said, “and then [paramedics] did the rescue breaths on the female first, and then the other one.”
The driver and passenger inside the dark colored truck were pronounced dead at the scene.
Detectives said speed was a factor in the crash.
‘[I hoped] that I could try and help, but I’m still shaken up,” said Kwiatkowski.
Hours later, 7News cameras captured the damaged hotel sign.
Officers shut down a northbound portion of U.S. 1 while they investigated. The roadway has since reopened to traffic.
As for the driver of the Honda, it remains unclear whether they had to be taken to the hospital or if they were able to walk away.
Police were working to notify the victims’ next of kin, as they continue their investigation.
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