FORT PIERCE, Fla. — Two law enforcement officers were hospitalized after a crash on U.S. Highway 1 in Fort Pierce involving a suspected drunk driver Saturday night, according to the St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol, around 11:25 p.m., two deputies with the St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office (SLCSO) and one officer with the Fort Pierce Police Department (FPPD) were conducting a felony traffic stop on a reckless driver.
The deputies and officer were standing outside their vehicles on the side of US-1 at the time of the crash.
NBC affiliate WPTV reported that 45-year-old Perry Peables of Vero Beach struck the back of the SLCSO cruiser which then, due to the impact, struck the back of two other law enforcement vehicles and two of the law enforcement officers.
The sheriff's office shared a video on Facebook showing the moments before and after the crash.
SLCSO Sheriff Keith Pearson told WPTV that all of the law enforcement vehicles had their emergency lights on at the time of the crash. The officers were hospitalized but have since been released, Pearson said.
Authorities found an open container of alcohol in Peables' vehicle and said he was slurring his words when he was approached by law enforcement following the crash.
"At the end of the day, this individual, Mr. Peables, should have never gotten behind the wheel and should've never struck our deputies. That could have easily been avoided had he not been drinking and driving," said Pearson.
Peables was arrested for six counts of DUI with damage to property and injury and refusal to submit to DUI testing, according to SLCSO.
The crash comes less than two weeks after a crash in Palm Beach County left three deputies dead.
FHP is conducting a full investigation into the crash.
