MIAMI GARDENS, FLA. (WSVN) - A driver was killed when she collided head-on with a Miami-Dade County transit bus in Miami Gardens, a violent wreck that also sent a bus passenger to the hospital, police said.
Miami Gardens Police and Miami-Dade Fire Rescue units responded to the scene of the crash at the intersection of Northwest 199th Street and Seventh Avenue, just after 5 a.m. on Thursday.
Investigators said a 22-year-old woman and traveling eastbound in a gray Hyundai Sonata when she ran a red light at the intersection and slammed into the transit bus, which had a green arrow and was turning left onto Northwest Seventh Avenue.
Surveillance video captured the moment of impact, as the sedan came barreling down the road, as well as the green arrow as the bus slowly started to turn.
The impact was so severe that it caused the Sonata to be thrown backwards, and the back of the articulated Miami-Dade Transit bus to slam into the front.
Rescue crews responded immediately, because their fire station is literally across the street from the scene of the crash, but it was too late for the driver of the car, whom they pronounced dead at the scene.
7 Drone Force provided a view from above. The bus was seen angled to the left before it was removed from the intersection.
From the ground, the violence of the crash is apparent. Cameras showed the bike rack that was in front of the Route 77 bus seared into the hood of the mangled Sonata. All of the car’s air bags were deployed.
Police said one passenger on the bus complained of injuries and was transported to the hospital. Tne extent of his injuries is unclear.
Area resident Vivian Menendez was saddened by the tragic outcome.
“I spoke to the neighbor here, and she said it’s her son [who] heard the crash, and it’s probably – I don’t know if the person was trying to eat the red light or something, but it’s just sad,” she said. “It’s too early in the morning to lose their life.”
Traffic homicide detectives were able to determine how the crash happened because the bus is equipped with video cameras, which recorded the whole crash.
Officers shut down a portion of Northwest 199th Street while they investigated. Drivers heading eastbound were detoured south of the scene, and westbound traffic was reduced to one lane.
It remains unclear whether or not the driver of the Sonata was speeding in 40-mile-an-hour zone, but Menendez said too many motorists treat Northwest 199th Street like a speedway.
“It really has to stop, and nobody cares. They just want to continue to speed, they want to eat the red light, and unfortunately, you know, something tragic happened, like a person lost their life,” she said.
The Sonata has since been towed away from the scene. It was covered in a blue tarp because the driver’s body was still inside.
“I feel bad for the person that passed away, and it’s sad,” said Menendez.
Detectives have not identified the driver of the Sonata, as their investigation continues.
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