A police officer was struck this morning during a routine stop on Highway 401. SOURCE CityNews
By Jessica Paiva
An Ontario Provincial Police officer has suffered minor injuries after a collision on Highway 401 near Pickering Monday at 4:30 a.m.
OPP Constable Lisa McIntyre said the cruiser with two officers was east of Brock Road investigating a collision between a tractor-trailer and a BMW.
During the investigation, the police vehicle was rear-ended by a passing Subaru vehicle.
Const. McIntyre said the suspect was an impaired driver.
One officer and the Subaru driver are being treated for minor injuries.
Mother Against Drunk Driving was unavailable to comment.
According to the MADD website, “the estimated number of impaired driving trips taken in Canada each year is 12.5 million.”
Veronica Braga, 29, told Humber News that she was terrified when she described her experience of being in a car crash with an impaired driver.
Braga said a friend of the family had a lot to drink one evening and decided to go behind the wheel to pick someone up.
“I remember him swerving a lot,” said Braga. “I fell asleep in the car and then I woke-up when the crash happened, falling out of my seat.”
Braga said she noticed the car was flipping to one side. The right lane of the road didn’t have any rails and would cause the vehicle to tumble down a hill, but the vehicle swerved away.
“I’m extremely against drinking and driving,” said Braga. “Not only is one risking their lives but they are also risking other people’s lives. I hate it and I’ll call out anyone that I know that does it.”
Police was unable to comment on which hospital the officer was taken to.
[SlideDeck2 id=26278]