Driver Cited in Crash that Sent Cop to Hospital

The driver of a car that allegedly crashed into a Cranston Police cruiser en route to a report of a fire has been cited for driving through a red light and failing to yield right of way to an emergency vehicle. 

Police said Aaron Lambert, 24, of Ludlow, Vt., drove through the intersection of Park and Reservoir Avenues, crashing into a patrol car just before 6:30 a.m. Monday morning. Both drivers were transported to Rhode Island Hospital with minor injuries.

The accident reconstruction conducted by Cranston Police Traffic Investigator Peter Leclerc determined that Lambert, who was behind the wheel of a Chrylser Cirrus, reportedly was driving south on Reservoir Avenue when a truck in front of him slowed down to take a right turn. 

Lambert reportedly became distracted by the truck, switched into the left lane to continue south on Reservoir avenue and drove through the intersection, apparently unaware that the light had turned red.

The officer, who was heading to a report of a fire at 85 Mathewson Street, had the green light but slowed down as he entered the intersection, according to witnesses. It was then that the crash occurred.

Police said the officer's lights and sirens were activated at the time of the accident and the details of the crash were corroborated by multiple independent witnesses at the scene.

Though nobody was seriously hurt in the crash, both cars suffered heavy damage and debris and car parts were strewn about the busy intersection in the heart of the city.