Multiple Orange County sheriff’s patrol cars involved in wild crash

A wild rollover crash damaged four Orange County Sheriff’s Department squad cars early Monday morning.  Preliminary information indicates the crash occurred around 2:15 a.m. at the intersection of Orangewood Avenue and Beach Boulevard in Stanton.  First responders, including firefighters, were said to have been at the scene handling a car fire at a Shell gas station when the crash happened.   Video from the scene shows a Nissan Altima sedan on its side wedged in between two patrol vehicles. Further footage shows the sedan also hit a pole and damaged a water pipe. A sheriff's department official told KTLA 5's Erin Myers that four OCSD vehicles were damaged, elaborating that multiple deputies were within inches of being hit. According to a witness, Kevin Lee, the Nissan sedan was traveling at a high rate of speed and slammed into the patrol vehicles parked just outside of the gas station. “The Altima was flying down Beach, jumped the curb on the side and landed in between two cop cars,” Lee said. “It jumped pretty high.”  At least one person, believed to be the Altima driver, was seen on a stretcher in an ambulance, and another individual was seen lying down near one of the gas station pumps. No injuries were immediately reported to deputies or firefighters. In a social media update posted later on Monday morning, the Orange County Fire Authority confirmed they were responding to a car fire at the gas station and that the crash that occurred left the Altima driver trapped. "While at the scene, a second vehicle crashed into Orange County Sheriff’s Department vehicles blocking the fire scene - an adult male driver was trapped in this vehicle," OCFA said on X. "The incident was upgraded to a Traffic Collision Cut and Rescue, bringing a truck for auto extrication and additional OCFA paramedic units." The scene was cleared by 6 a.m., although investigators still had the area blocked off over an hour later due to the damaged pole and water pipe. OCSD officials said that the California Highway Patrol will be handling the investigation into the crash. It remains unclear if the driver of the Altima will be facing any charges.