Newly released body-camera footage shows a Lake Mary police sergeant using his patrol car to stop a runaway pickup truck after its driver lost consciousness behind the wheel.
Sgt Robert Fugate was on duty at about 8.15am on Sunday, September 13, when he saw the white truck move into the junction of Rinehart Road and Lake Mary Boulevard in Lake Mary, Florida.
Drivers were sounding their horns as the vehicle continued forwards. Fugate initially activated his emergency lights and siren, but quickly realised the driver was slumped over the steering wheel and appeared to be unconscious.
The pickup was travelling at about 15mph towards oncoming traffic, leaving the officer only seconds to react. He steered his patrol vehicle into its path at an angle, taking the impact before the truck could enter the opposing lanes.
“I moved forward and I angled my car so that I would take the impact to avoid her harming herself or anybody else,” Fugate said.
First responders determined that the driver had suffered a medical emergency. A witness also recorded the collision, while the newly released police footage captures the moments immediately afterwards.
Neither Fugate nor the driver suffered serious injuries. The sergeant said he had simply responded to the danger in front of him.
“I just reacted to what was presented in front of me and did what I felt was best to help preserve her life or somebody else’s life,” he said.
