A Virginia police officer was struck by a runaway car that sped through a median, crossed the oncoming lane and into a car that the officer as well as the patrol had stopped.
The officer jumped out of the way and managed to avoid the initial collision, but was grazed in the legs in a scene captured by his dashcam.
“The officer was hit and nearly killed,” the Fairfax County Police Department wrote on Facebook.
Footage shows him reappearing, calling for help and checking on the drivers of the other vehicles. The unnamed officer sustained only minor injuries, which Fairfax County Police Commissioner Kevin Davis described as “miraculous.”
Davis said at a news conference that the speeding car, a 2018 BMW M3, was estimated to be traveling at over 120 mph when it lost control on a slight bend in the freeway.
“It happened way too fast,” Davis said. “It was a rocket, and then it became a rocket.”
The 17-year-old driver and his two passengers and the driver of the stopped car were also slightly injured, the department said.
“Parents and guardians should use this video as an opportunity to talk to their teenage drivers about how their driving behavior can affect the lives of others,” the department said in a release.
Davis added that parents should be mindful of what type of cars they give their young drivers.
“The car that was involved in that collision yesterday was a lot of car – a lot of car – for an inexperienced driver,” he said.
The teenage driver, whose name was not released, has been charged with reckless driving, which constitutes a misdemeanor.