A St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department officer was critically injured after being hit by a vehicle while investigating a carjacking incident on Interstate 70 near Shreve, as reported by KSDK. The officer was subsequently rushed to Barnes Jewish Hospital for treatment of a severe leg injury incurred during the chase.
MoDOT cameras captured the incident, revealing that eastbound lanes were subsequently shut down, causing significant traffic delays captured in images that showed traffic backed up for miles at Riverview and Jennings, this according to information released by Spectrum Local News. The SLMPD had earlier sent an alert on X, a social media platform formerly known as Twitter, signaling the gravity of the event as officials promptly responded to the scene.
Police Chief Robert Tracy detailed the courageous measures taken by fellow officers to save their colleague's life, stating "If it wasn’t for the quick actions of our officers putting him into one of our Tahoes, clearing out down Kingshighway, getting him to Barnes Hospital, it could have been much worse than it is now and pretty much saved his life," in a statement obtained by KSDK. The injured officer was conscious and stabilized at the hospital, where he was able to speak with family members before undergoing surgery.
The severity of the collision was evidenced by MoDOT's camera footage showing two vehicles that appeared to have crashed head-on with the scene cordoned off by multiple police and fire vehicles, and with numerous police vehicles arriving at the hospital with their lights on, Chief Tracy was seen addressing officers outside the hospital further emphasized the urgency of the situation, as was reported by First Alert 4. No further details regarding the investigation into the carjacking or the condition of the injured officer have been released as of yet updates will be provided as they become available.
