By Suzie Ziegler
LOGAN COUNTY, Colo. — The Colorado State Patrol is warning drivers to slow down and move over after two patrol cars were hit in less than two days, 9News reported last week.
Video from one incident shows the moment a pickup truck crashed into the back of a cruiser. The trooper had stopped to help a stranded motorist and angled their cruiser, with lights flashing, partially into the leftmost lane. The dashcam was mounted on the offending vehicle.
Luckily, the trooper and motorist were standing back in the grassy median and were not injured. The driver of the pickup truck suffered non-life-threatening injuries, the report said. Police believe distracted driving may have been a factor. The offending driver is expected to be charged, police said.
“Wake up Colorado,” said Col. Matthew C. Packard, chief of the Colorado State Patrol, in a statement. “The slow down or move over law is to protect us, so we can protect you, just as Trooper Barco protected the other motorist in need. Please move over and curb any distraction that takes away from your responsibility to be a safe driver!”
Police say this was the second time a CSP cruiser was hit last week. On Wednesday, a trooper was responding to a crash when a driver suspected of DUI crashed into the trooper’s motorcycle and a tow truck, the report said.
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