NATICK, Mass. (WPRI) — A wrong-way crash in Natick temporarily shut down the eastbound side of the Massachusetts Turnpike early Wednesday morning, according to Massachusetts State Police.
A trooper saw a Nissan Versa traveling the wrong way on the Mass. Pike around 3 a.m. in Newton at an excessive speed while weaving in and out of traffic. The trooper tried to get the male driver to stop but refused.
At the same time, several troopers were at the Natick Service Plaza near Exit 13 for a previous call of a man with a firearm.
One of the troopers then deployed a tire deflation device from the service plaza, but before the driver stopped, they struck an ambulance, according to state police.
State police say two ambulance personnel, a 45-year-old man and a 38-year-old man, were transported to Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) with minor injuries.
The wrong-way driver was also transported to MGH with serious injuries and is in critical condition.
The ambulance patient, a 49-year-old woman, was taken to Tufts Medical Center with minor injuries. She was originally in the ambulance for a non-urgent transport at the time of the crash, state police said.
State police say the driver did not have identification on him at the time of the crash and they are working to identify him. He is expected to face criminal charges, state police added.
The suspect’s vehicle also had a license plate belonging to another vehicle.
All eastbound lanes on the Mass. Pike reopened just before 6 a.m.
An investigation is ongoing.
