TEMPE, AZ — A DPS trooper used his vehicle to stop a wrong-way driver on the Loop 101 in Tempe early Sunday morning.
DPS says around 4:35 a.m., they received calls about someone driving the wrong way on I-10 near Baseline Road.
That vehicle then got on U.S. 60 heading eastbound in the westbound lanes before getting on the Loop 101 heading southbound in the northbound lanes.
A DPS trooper then drove his vehicle head-on into the wrong-way vehicle near the Baseline Road exit to stop it from going further.
Both the trooper and the wrong-way driver were reportedly taken to the hospital for minor injuries.
DPS troopers tell ABC15 they believe impairment may have played a role in the incident, and the driver, only identified as a man in his 20's, will likely face charges.
This incident happened just miles away from where the 2014 wrong-way crash that resulted in the death of Officer Brandon Mendoza.
State Trooper makes courageous decision to collide with wrong-way vehicle and successfully brings it to a STOP.
— Dept. of Public Safety (@Arizona_DPS) August 21, 2022
Read more ➡️ https://t.co/r8KQf27Xmg#AZTroopers #CourteousVigilance pic.twitter.com/8uKoIOhI6p
