State Police Cruiser Struck In Washington County
WASHINGTON COUNTY (KDKA) -- A state trooper and construction worker were not hurt, but the driver of an SUV had to be hospitalized following an accident along the Mon Fayette Expressway in Washington County.
The crash happened around 11:30 a.m. in a road construction zone near toll No. 43.
According to state police, Trooper Will Peirce, a 10-year veteran, had parked his vehicle on the side of the road and had gotten out to talk to William Kapton, of Aliquippa, the worker in a construction vehicle just before the crash.
Peirce reportedly saw the SUV driven by Richard Orlandi run off the road and head straight towards them.
State police say Peirce and Kapton had just seconds to run up a nearby hillside before the SUV slammed into the trooper's cruiser, pushing it into the work vehicle.
Police estimate the SUV was going about 70 miles per hour at the time. The cruiser was totaled.
The transmission was separated from the vehicle. Also, the trooper's briefcase, which was sitting on the front seat, was snapped in half.
Orlandi, of Vestaburg, Pa., was taken by medical helicopter to Allegheny General Hospital.
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