Several people hospitalized after cab strikes bicycle, jumps curb in Manhattan
NEW YORK -- There is new information in the case of a yellow cab jumping a curb along a busy street in the city on Monday.
Six people were hurt and three suffered minor injuries. Strangers worked together to lift the car off of two people who were pinned under the car.
CBS2's Kevin Rincon talked to a physical therapist from Australia who sprung into action.
There was no shortage of heroes here on Monday, as so many strangers tried their best to work through a truly horrific scene, after a cab pinned two women to the ground along the sidewalk.
"Lucky enough, I guess my training kicked in," said Scott Robbins, a physical therapist.
Robbins was having coffee with his partner when a bicyclist coming down Broadway slammed into a yellow cab making a turn off of West 29th Street.
Police are reviewing surveillance video, and believe the cyclist may have ran a red light. Police say the 60-year-old driver tried to hit the brakes but instead hit the gas pedal.
"At one point, the taxi driver tried to reverse and I yelled at him, 'Stop!'" Robbins said.
The cab jumped the curb and hit three people, pinning two of them under the car.
Robbins, who works in an emergency room in Australia, said the situation was bad.
"I knew the other leg was broken, but I thought it was attached, and then she moved to try and sit up and I realized it was no longer attached. At that point, she started bleeding profusely," Robbins said.
He wasn't alone. There were dozens who ran in to try and move the cab that was pinning two of the victims.
"There was one girl missing from her knee down, and then she had a compound fracture on her ankle. And then the other lady was facedown. Her left leg was pretty, pretty bad," one person said. "It was shocking, you know, traumatizing. Quickly, you're just kind of shaking and reacting. And we were getting ice and taking like aprons out. We got a belt off with somebody to provide a tourniquet."
"A remarkable scene took place, about 15 to 20 New Yorkers attempted to pick this cab off these women," said NYPD Deputy Chief John Chell.
Mayor Eric Adams said the investigation will be thorough and he thanked those who stepped in to help.
"You saw New Yorkers surrounding the cab trying to assist as much as possible," Adams said.
Rincon reported the cab driver was taken to the hospital after complaining of chest pains following the crash. The victims were tourists. There were two from Columbus, Ohio, and two from Mexico.