Multiple pedestrians hurt when box truck crashes in downtown Boston, overturns on sidewalk
Multiple pedestrians were injured in downtown Boston on Tuesday after being hit by a box truck that jumped the curb before crashing onto its side during the busy lunch hour, Boston Fire said.
The incident happened at about 12:48 p.m. near Chinatown, Boston police said.
From Sky5, a yellow Penske rental truck could be seen on its right side on the sidewalk. The crash happened during the lunch hour in a part of the city known for its restaurants and foot traffic.
“We’re going to follow the facts and where they lead us to determine what exactly happened here,” said Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden. “There’s no reason to believe this was an intentional act.”
According to Boston EMS, six people were hurt, and four were taken by ambulance to area hospitals.
Three people were taken to Tufts Medical Center, where one was in fair condition, one was in critical condition and one was in good condition. Two other people were treated at the scene but did not go to the hospital. One other person was taken to Mass. General.
Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox said one person remained critically injured, and it appears the crash is a “tragic accident.” Cox said the driver is being treated and was upgraded from critical conditional.
The truck driver was pinned inside the cab after the crash and had to be extracted from the vehicle, Boston Fire said. The truck struck multiple poles and was wedged between a pole and the building, Boston Fire said.
A ramen restaurant on the corner was heavily damaged, and a dislodged fire hydrant was in the roadway. Restaurant sign boards, broken glass and other debris littered the area.
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu said the city’s building inspector will assess the structures involved.
ABC News said officials do not believe, at this point, that this looks suspicious or intentional, but they are actively trying to figure out what happened.
Authorities are actively investigating whether the crash was the result of the driver having a medical emergency, ABC News reports.
In a statement to sister station WCVB, Penske said it is aware of the crash and the company "will be cooperating fully with authorities to support their investigation. Our thoughts are with those who have been injured in this unfortunate incident."
The company added, "Based on our records, the truck involved was out on rent to a commercial trucking company. We have no other information at this time."
Tufts Medical Center's Dr. Brien Barnewolt said the facility, which is a level one trauma center, activated its mass casualty response when they first learned of the crash, meaning several specially trained teams were on standby and ready to receive and treat patients.
This is a developing story, and this page will be updated as more information is available.