New Jersey police chase ends with crash in Northeast Philadelphia
A police chase that began in New Jersey ended with a crash in Northeast Philadelphia Monday morning, leaving several vehicles and a fence damaged.
New Jersey State Police were attempting to do a traffic stop in Trenton around 11 a.m., but the driver refused to pull over, sparking a chase that crossed into Pennsylvania, according to Lt. David Ordille, a spokesperson for Trenton police.
The pursuit ended on Torresdale Avenue near Meridian Street, where an unmarked New Jersey State Police SUV crashed into a white Toyota SUV before slamming through a fence and hitting a parked car.
Authorities said the white Toyota was not connected to the pursuit. Ordille said it appears drivers were trying to pull over as the chase approached and the Toyota driver might not have been able to move out of the way in time.
The crash left debris scattered across the block and forced police to shut down Torresdale Avenue in both directions for several hours while investigators worked at the scene.
"This is new to me, because I just moved here thinking it was a good neighborhood," Isaac Santiago from Northeast Philadelphia said. "There are a lot of kids on this block, so for me it's kind of alarming."
Neighbors said the impact was powerful enough to shake nearby homes.
"Like a big boom, you can hear the crash," Judith Del Rosario, whose parked car was damaged, said. "For a second, I even thought, 'Don't tell me we have another plane crash' or something. I was scared because it was so loud."
Police said both the trooper driving the unmarked SUV and the white Toyota driver suffered minor injuries. The trooper was taken to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in Hamilton, New Jersey, while the civilian driver was taken to Jefferson Torresdale Hospital. Both were later released.
Authorities said the suspect being pursued escaped and remains at large. Police have not released a description of the suspect vehicle.
Investigators also have not said why troopers initially tried to stop the driver, though Ordille said it might have been connected to a weapons investigation.
Del Rosario said the aftermath was hard to watch.
"There was a guy in the white SUV," Del Rosario said. "He was really in pain on the floor, like crying, screaming. Even when the ambulance tried to pick him up, you can hear his screaming."
Del Rosario said she has lived on Torresdale Avenue for five years and has seen crashes in the area before, but nothing like this. She said she's grateful her family wasn't hurt and is now working with her insurance company to repair the damage to her property.
