By Carol Robinson
al.com
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Three people – including two Birmingham police officers – were injured early Thursday in a crash on Interstate 59.
The two West Precinct police officers were sitting inside their patrol vehicle blocking traffic for a separate wreck when their SUV was struck by a Ford F-150.
The crash happened about 4 a.m. on I-59 southbound near the 19th Street exit.
Officer Truman Fitzgerald said Birmingham Fire and Rescue Service transported the driver of the pickup truck as well as both officers to the hospital.
A female officer is in serious, but stable, condition. The male officer, as well as the F-150 driver, suffered non-life-threatening injuries.
Fitzgerald said the circumstances surrounding the crash are accidental. However, he said, the department wants to remind motorists of Alabama’s Move-Over Act, a law passed in Alabama in 2009, designed to protect law enforcement officers, emergency responders, tow operators and highway maintenance personnel who are conducting business on Alabama’s roadways.
Alabama’s “move-over” law requires motorists to move over and slow down when they encounter emergency responders stopped roadside with emergency signals activated.
If a motorist sees a vehicle on the side of the road with its emergency lights flashing (red, blue and amber), the motorist is required to move out of the lane closest to the vehicle if possible. If not safe to move over, the driver should slow to a speed that is at least 15 miles per hour less than the posted speed limit unless otherwise directed by a law enforcement officer.
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