A file photo of an ambulance — Unsplash/Erik McLean
A crash involving a privately operated ambulance killed an infant and critically injured her mother in Philadelphia early Sunday morning, March 15, police said.
The collision happened around 5:15 a.m. at the intersection of Torresdale Avenue and Harbison Avenue, according to the Philadelphia Police Department.
Investigators say a white 2014 Mercedes-Benz ambulance was traveling southbound on the 5200 block of Torresdale Avenue at a high rate of speed and ran a steady red traffic signal without lights or sirens activated.
At the same time, a red 2010 Honda Accord traveling eastbound on Harbison Avenue with a green light entered the intersection and was struck on the driver’s side front door by the ambulance, police said.
The force of the crash ejected an adult passenger and an infant through the ambulance’s front windshield, leaving both in the roadway, investigators detailed.
Police had initially been responding to a call for an unresponsive infant at a home on the 6600 block of Ditman Street. Before officers arrived, family members left the residence in a private ambulance in an attempt to rush the child to the hospital, authorities explained.
Philadelphia Fire Department medics transported the infant and her mother to Albert Einstein Medical Center.
The infant, identified as Marian Harris, was pronounced dead at 6:17 a.m., police said.
Her mother suffered severe head trauma and remained in critical condition.
The driver of the Honda Accord, a 25-year-old man, refused medical treatment at the scene, according to police.
Officers transported the ambulance operator, a 51-year-old man, to Jefferson Torresdale Hospital. He is expected to face charges including DUI and related offenses.
The crash remains under investigation by the Philadelphia Police Department’s Crash Investigation Division.
Marian Harris’s loved ones are invited to share details with Daily Voice by emailing mailto:jpikora@dailyvoice.com.