Actress and stuntwoman Carrie Bernans has been severely injured in a hit-and-run that !
In the early hours of Monday morning, the Black Panther star was left critically injured after a driver crashed into the outdoor dining area at Chirp restaurant in Manhattan at around 1:30 AM, according to her reps via People. The 29-year-old sustained several broken bones and is currently in critical condition at the hospital. Her young child was not present at the time, thankfully.
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As for what happened, police told the outlet they were informed of a physical assault involving a black Mercedes in the area of 33rd Street and 6th Avenue. The vehicle had a 44-year-old male driver and a 34-year-old female passenger. The NYPD elaborated in a statement:
“Officers on foot attempted to de-escalate the situation and ordered the male operator of the vehicle to put the vehicle into park. The male failed to obey the officers’ orders and fled westbound on 33rd Street before making a right turn onto 7th Avenue counter flow to traffic.”
Noting several injured civilians, they continued:
“The Mercedes then turned onto westbound West 34th Street where he mounted the sidewalk and began traveling westbound. The male then struck a food cart and two 39-year-old female pedestrians, a 31-year-old female pedestrian, and a 29-year-old female pedestrian.”
Per the PD’s statement, two officers were also injured as well as the passenger of the Mercedes after the driver “mounted the curb onto the sidewalk again,” hitting “two unoccupied parked vehicles and a 2022 Toyota Camry in the roadway.” (That said, TMZ reported that three officers were injured.) Either way, the driver was then placed into custody. The injured pedestrians and the passenger, who is in stable condition, were all taken to NYC Health & Hospitals/Bellevue while the cops were taken to a local hospital, police told People. Per CBS News, the driver is currently at Bellevue Hospital in critical condition.
The Color Purple star’s mother, Patricia Lee, shared several graphic photos of her daughter on Instagram after the incident, revealing she’s “in so much pain” after getting pinned under a food stand while out with a friend. Patricia said:
“She’s still in so much pain and can’t answer calls at this time, but appreciate the messages. This was a traumatic incident. Please keep Carrie in your thoughts and prayers. She’s in so much pain but healing. She was involved in a traumatic incident in NYC where a man, early 40s was trying to escape a hit and run and ran into multiple cars before hitting a food stand that her friend & her were walking near. It ended up knocking her unconscious and pended her under the stand. She was under it unaware of what was happening.”
Addressing her condition, the worried mother continued:
“She have a few broken bones, fractures, & chipped teeth but thanking God that she’s alive. Nine people were injured in his attempted escape from the hit & run, including 3 police officers. Police caught him shortly after and arrested him. Amidst the chaos of the New Year’s incident, she’s holding onto an immense sense of gratitude for life itself.”
She concluded:
“This setback hasn’t deterred her belief that something remarkable is still being crafted by God. Despite the injuries sustained in the collision caused by a hit-and-run in NYC, she’s filled with hope and faith in the unfolding of a beautiful new chapter. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers as she navigate this path toward recovery and new beginnings. Just finished surgery. “
Whoa. What a scary situation. We’re so glad she survived! You can see images (below) but BE WARNED, they are graphic in nature:
Per TMZ, due to the amount of people injured, the crash was declared a mass casualty incident. We’re sending our thoughts and prayers to all those hurt in this scary police chase!
[Image via Carrie Bernans/Instagram]
The post <i>Black Panther</i> Actress Severely Injured In 'Mass Casualty' Hit-And-Run -- Car Drove Onto NYC Sidewalk! appeared first on Perez Hilton.