UPDATE Monday, Jan. 29:
TPD has identified the suspect in the wrong-way crash as 20-year-old Raul Ricardo Padilla.
Padilla, who was the driver of the Dodge Charger, has been charged with:
- 3 counts of Aggravated Assault with a Dangerous Instrument (vehicle)
- Criminal Damage
- Unlawful Flight from Pursuing Law Enforcement
- 5 counts of Endangerment
- Aggravated Driving Under the Influence
Padilla was booked into the Pima County Jail after he was released from the hospital.
UPDATE 7:30 p.m. - Tucson police released more details in the wrong way crash with an ambulance that shutdown Interstate 10 early Tuesday morning.
TPD said around 1:15 a.m. officers pulled over a dark gray Dodge Charger. When the driver didn't stop, officers called in the TPD Air Unit to track the car down.
According to police, the Air Unit observed the driver jump out, run and the passenger jump behind the wheel.
Tucson police and the Air Unit found and arrested the original driver.
TPD says officers who were on their way to assist in the arrest of the original driver spotted the Dodge Charger driving erratically, without headlights on, merging in the wrong direction on eastbound I-10.
They say an officer driving eastbound tried to warn other drivers by turning on their emergency lights. TPD says the officer tried to stop the wrong way driver but the suspect was able to maneuver past.
TPD and the Air Unit pursued the car, flashing the spotlight to warn other drivers. Near the Grant Road overpass, he crashed into an American Medical Response ambulance.
The ambulance caught fire before the two medics inside could escape.
TPD says law enforcement and the Tucson Fire Department used special equipment to pull the medics and the suspect out.
TPD says one of the AMR medic and the suspect are in the hospital with serious, non-life threatening injuries. Police say the second medic is hospitalized with critical injuries.
Two of the TPD officers that helped pull the people from the care were treated for minor injuries.
In a release, Tucson police said the incident will be reviewed and TPD’s Office of Professional Standards is investigating the responding officer's actions.
TPD said additional details will be released as they become available.
UPDATE 10:35 a.m. - Interstate 10 eastbound had reopened at Grant Road, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation
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The Tucson Police Department say an AMR ambulance and another car were involved in a crash near I-10 between Miracle Mile and Grant Road just before 2 a.m. Tuesday morning.
Two paramedics in the ambulance and the driver of the car are in critical condition.
UPDATE 6:52am the car was traveling the wrong way on I-10 near milepost 258 westbound in the eastbound lanes before colliding head on into the ambulance.
Stay with KGUN9 for updates.
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Brooke Chau is a reporter for KGUN 9. She was a part of Fresno State's newscast, Fresno State Focus and interned at KFSN-ABC30 in Fresno, CA before coming to KGUN 9. Share your story ideas and important issues with Brooke by emailing brooke.chau@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
