Conn. Officer Rescues Driver Following Cruiser Crash

CHESHIRE, Conn. -- Quick thinking by a police officer may have saved the life of a Watertown man, 62, whose car crashed into the officer's cruiser early Tuesday after the driver went into diabetic shock.

Officer Lorin Webber was responding to a medical emergency call at a West Main Street nursing home at about 5:20 a.m. when he saw a late-model Monte Carlo heading straight for his cruiser near Jocelyn Lane, Lt. James Fasano said Wednesday. Despite Webber's best efforts, the Monte Carlo hit the cruiser headon, Fasano said.

"It could have been a lot worse, but Officer Webber was slowing down and had come to a complete stop by the time the other driver had hit the cruiser," Fasano said.

Webber was not injured in the crash, but could feel his cruiser being pushed by the car with its engine roaring, according to Fasano. Webber got out of his cruiser and found the driver of the other car slumped over, Fasano said.

The driver was unresponsive and the car doors were locked, according to Fasano. On the cruiser's dashboard camera, Webber can be heard saying, "I think the guy's in cardiac arrest."

The officer got bolt cutters from the trunk of his cruiser and smashed the passenger-side window to get the driver out. Because the investigation is continuing, Fasano said, the department is not releasing the driver's name. He was treated and released from an area hospital later Tuesday.

Webber was unavailable for comment Wednesday. Fasano estimated that $1,000 to $2,000 in damage was done to the front end of the cruiser, a new Ford Crown Victoria put into service in March.

Call Luther Turmelle at 203-789-5706. Follow him on Twitter @LutherTurmelle. To receive breaking news first, simply text the word nhnews to 22700. Standard message + data rates apply.

McClatchy-Tribune News Service