Police have arrested a man and are investigating after a runaway SUV interrupted the lunch-hour commute today when it crashed into several vehicles across multiple intersections.
According to an eyewitness, a man driving a blue Hyundai SUV first hit a car at Old Kingston Road and Lawrence Avenue East shortly after noon.
George Kirton, 57, was in his car in the turn lane at the corner of Lawrence and Kingston, he said.
“The lights had not changed and I had the go ahead heading westbound on Lawrence,” he said. “As soon as I went to turn, this guy (in the blue SUV) hit me and spun me around so I was facing east on Lawrence.”
Kirton was not hurt in the accident as his side impact airbags did deploy, he said.
“I am just shook up a bit, he just hit the rear end of the car,” he said.
The blue SUV left the scene and continued west on Lawrence, Kirton said.
Another witness, Lorraine Bahlmann, said she was standing on the northwest corner of Lawrence and Scarborough Golf Club Road when the SUV approached.
“The blue SUV just came down and hit (a car) so hard and pushed it into the intersection,” she said. “Then the SUV went around the car it hit and took off.”
The occupants of that car were taken away by ambulance.
The blue SUV continued along Lawrence after hitting the car at Scarborough Golf Club Road, said Maria Benn, 20, who was in a car with her mother at the time.
“The SUV travelled down Lawrence and just crashed into everybody and didn’t stop,” she said.
The SUV came to a stop after rear-ending a CAA truck, which was pushed forward into another vehicle.
Police arrested a man at the scene.
The investigation is ongoing and no information on injuries has been released. A spokesperson from 43 Division was not available for comment.