By JULIE CUNNINGHAM
(Natick, MA) More information is available regarding a wrong way accident on the Mass Pike in Natick. A vehicle traveling at an excessive rate of speed was traveling the wrong way on the Eastbound side when a Massachusetts State Trooper observed the car weaving between lanes and driving erratically. When the trooper signaled the driver to stop, the operator refused. The vehicle continued to travel the wrong way on the Eastbound side for three more minutes. Stop sticks were deployed across the Eastbound lane from the edge of the Natick Service Plaza. The vehicle became disabled when it hit the stop sticks, causing it to strike an ambulance transporting a patient for non-urgent care. A 45 year old male and a 38 year old male operating the ambulance, as well as the 49 year old female being transported, were transported to the hospital with minor injuries. The driver of the wrong way vehicle suffered major injuries. His identity has not been released.
The trooper who initially pursued the wrong way vehicle was ordered to stop pursuit. A spokesperson from the Massachusetts State Police said that police do not normally engage in pursuits that require them to drive on the wrong way on the highway.