Pittsburg police officers investigating a deadly crash Monday night nearly became victims themselves when a suspected DUI driver barreled into the scene.
The driver slammed into three Pittsburg patrol vehicles stationed at a deadly accident that happened about four hours earlier, police said. The officers were not inside their vehicles and were uninjured.
At the time of the crash, the police cruisers were staged at the scene with their flashing lights on, and there were reflective barricades blocking the roadway.
"We were able to manage traffic for the first five and a half hours we were out here, without anybody running through the barricade," Pittsburg police Capt. Philip Gayler said. "This vehicle was traveling at a high rate of speed, more than what was safe for the roadway, and for whatever reason didn’t see the barricade or the police cars with their emergency equipment on."
The captain said the driver, an unidentified woman, showed visible signs of impairment but was not injured in the crash. She was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence.
The initial fatal crash officers were investigating damaged a PG&E power pole, which temporarily knocked out power to the area.
No other details in that crash were immediately available.
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