Motorist collides into CCSO patrol car enroute to another crash on SR 44 in Inverness
Inverness, Florida - At 1:20 pm, Nov. 4, a motorist crashed into a Citrus County Sheriff's Office (CCSO) patrol vehicle on State Road (SR) 44, near Richards Road in Inverness. According to a Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) crash report, the 50 year-old CCSO deputy driving the patrol car was enroute to another traffic crash that had occurred nearby, approximately 528 feet east of this crash location, and the original crash had resulted in injuries and a roadblock being set up.
The crash report stated that the CCSO patrol vehicle, a 2017 Ford Taurus 4-door sedan, was traveling east in the center left turn lane of SR 44, with it's sirens and lights activated, that the patrol vehicle was utilizing the center turn lane due to stopped traffic in the two eastbound lanes.
Meanwhile, a white 2017 Hyundai Sonato 4-door sedan, driven by a 36 year-old man from Hernando, FL, was stopped on Richards Road, at the intersection of SR 44, and the stopped traffic in the two eastbound lanes allowed the Ford Taurus to proceed forward and it traveled across the two eastbound lanes of SR 44 and entered the center left turn lane, to attempt a left turn onto SR 44, just ahead of the deputy's patrol vehicle, which resulted in the right front bumper of the patrol vehicle colliding with the left bumper and fender of the Hyundai Sonato.
Prior to the trooper's arrival, the Hyundai Sonato had been moved to a nearby parking lot, while the patrol vehicle came to rest and was still within the center turn lane of SR 44.
No injuries were reported as a result of this collision. The FHP trooper who investigated the crash issued a citation to the driver of the Hyundai Sonato for failure to yield to oncoming traffic.