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SAN FRANCISCO – A police chase ended in a fiery collision killing three people in San Francisco Saturday night, according to CHP official Vu Williams.
A California Highway Patrol officer started to pursue a white Chevrolet sedan that later slammed into a taxicab at the intersection of Brannan and 9th streets just before 9:30 p.m. The CHP officer spotted the Chevy spinning “doughnuts” before it took off after the officer flashed the red lights on his patrol car, Officer Vu Williams said.
All three people who had been inside the Chevy were pronounced dead at the scene.
Festivities at Super Bowl City and the Moscone Center were in full swing less than a mile from where the crash happened. The brief pursuit started when the CHP officer spotted the Chevrolet doing “doughnuts” near the intersection of Fifth and Bryant streets about 9:20 p.m., Williams said. The officer pulled up behind the Chevy at a stop light, but the car suddenly pulled away, he said.
The CHP officer turned on his patrol car’s overhead lights and tried to pull over the car, Williams said, but the driver kept going and ran another red light. That’s when the officer stopped the pursuit, Williams said. According to the CHP, the chase lasted only 10 to 15 seconds.
Moments after running the second light, the Chevy collided with a Yellow Cab and exploded into flames.
Two victims inside the car were burned badly, and the third was ejected from the car. Authorities did not identify them immediately.
A cone and yellow tape marked off part of the area where the car crashed Sunday morning. And graffiti saying “I HATE THIS GAME” was painted at the intersection.
KGO-TV reported that the three victims were leaving the NFL Experience at the Moscone Center and were heading home. A witness told the station that a white car was racing a blue Viper or Corvette and a black Charger at speeds near 80 mph when the crash occurred.
“The CHP is committed to thoroughly and professionally investigating this incident,” CHP Commander Christopher Sherry said in a statement Sunday. “I want to offer my sincere condolences to the involved families of the three young men. … This tragedy has deeply affected all of us at the CHP.”
The taxi driver was hospitalized with minor injuries to his head, Williams said. A passenger in the taxi fled the scene on foot and hadn’t been found as of late Sunday.
Agencies/Canadajournal
