EARLIER REPORT
A man said he and three family members are lucky to be alive after a van slammed into the back of their car while he was changing a tire on Catalpa Drive Thursday morning.
Allen Saunders said he, along with his fiancé, brother, and cousin were on Catalpa Drive just south of West Siebenthaler Avenue in Harrison Twp. around 1 a.m. when their vehicle encountered a flat tire.
While Saunders was out changing the tire, he said he noticed a van coming towards them at a high rate of speed.
“I jumped up, told everyone to run because I knew he wasn’t going to be able to stop,” he said. “We had very little time to react, [about] three to five seconds.”
The van slammed into the back of the disabled car, sending the car several feet into a yard. Saunders said he saw around six people jump out of the van after the crash and ran away.
“They didn't say nothing to us; they didn’t see if we was alright, nothing. They just took off, ran down the street right after impact. I don’t even see how they were able to run after they hit so hard."
Saunders said no one was in their vehicle when the crash occurred and were safely off the side of the road while he attempted to change the tire.
“[We were] Only seconds away from being injured. If we were in the car, we probably all would have made a trip to the hospital.”
“We’re just glad to be alive,” Saunders said.
Deputies investigating the crash confirmed Saunders’ account of the incident, but did not release any details about their investigation. It’s unknown if deputies have descriptions of anyone who fled from the van.
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