3 Officers Injured When LAPD Cruiser Goes Airborne

SOUTH LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Three LAPD officers were injured Friday when a vehicle they were riding in went airborne and slammed into another car.

The incident occurred at 108th and Avalon around 4:30 p.m.

According to Stu Mundel, reporting for Sky9, the officers were responding to a back-up call. The officers were traveling at a high rate of speed with lights and sirens on.

The three officers -- all members of the gang unit -- were transported to St. Francis hospital. They are reportedly in fair condition.

Video from the scene showed the LAPD car, missing at least one tire and the driver's side door.

Joshua Vick, another witness to the crash, told CBS2 and KCAL9 reporter Carter Evans that he saw the police car swerve to avoid another vehicle. "The car bounded off the curb and it kept flipping and when it flipped it hit that gate and landed on top of the neighbor's car."

Xavirea Smith heard the crash and came out to investigate. Her yard is a mess, her car totaled.

Because the LAPD car was leaking gas, she and her two dogs were evacuated as a precaution.

She said rescuers used "the Jaws of Life to pull one officer out of the car" and that his nose was bleeding.

Evans said the officers were being kept in the hospital overnight for observation.

The police vehicle crashed through a wrought-iron fence. Fortunately, reported Carter, none of the metal spikes pierced the vehicle.

Smith is glad everyone's okay. "It was very traumatic. Very, very traumatic."