Guadalupe police say a 21-year-old man has several charges pending against him after leading authorities on a chase from Guadalupe that eventually ended in a five-car crash in Santa Maria. The crash sent two people to the hospital.
It happened at around 9:30 a.m. Thursday at the intersection of Broadway and Donovan.
Witnesses say the crash sounded like an explosion.
“There was (a) big sound. It sounded like a bomb blast on the corner. It literally scared me. I thought maybe something happened in my store. I was looking around but it happened on the corner,” said Resham Subedi.
“I heard a siren behind me and I looked back and I saw the pursuit and I cringed a little because it was a red light and it had been red for a while. The traffic on Broadway was going quickly and he did not slow down very much, just blew through that light and ended up colliding with a white pickup truck. It was pretty scary,” said Laura Landine.
Guadalupe police say there was a “be on the lookout” alert for the black car that had been reported stolen earlier in the week. They followed the driver through Guadalupe before he eventually got on Highway 101 and made his way into Santa Maria.
Landine says the crash was a close call for her and her daughter.
“It was also a little bit scary because I had just come from that same direction that that white pickup truck was on. I had just stopped and picked up (my daughter) real quick and then we were going to Starbucks; so that could have been us going through the intersection,” she said.
The driver of the stolen vehicle is reportedly still at Marian Regional Medical Center for observation. Guadalupe police say he faces several pending charges including stolen vehicle, evading police, driving on a suspended license, speeding, failing to stop at stop signs, passing on double yellow, and possession of burglary tools.
