CLEVELAND — Two people are dead and two more are seriously injured after a two-car crash in Elyria Thursday afternoon, the Ohio State Highway Patrol said, and 3News has now learned the wreck occurred after police began pursuing a car they believed was involved in a drug deal.
The crash happened at 3:22 p.m. on state Route 57 at Griswold Road, troopers said. According to the highway patrol, a Nissan Altima with a driver and two other passengers failed to stop at a red light on State Route 57 and hit a Toyota Corolla that was turning east onto Griswold Road.
The OSHP confirms an Elyria police officer was trying to stop the Nissan just before the crash. Dash camera video sent to WKYC shows the high-speed chase on Route 57, with authorities claiming the Nissan had also disregarded an earlier stop sign near Erie Street and Lorain Avenue.
The Nissan hit the Toyota and then a pole, resulting in the fiery crash. Police footage shows officers arriving on scene and both vehicles heavily damaged.
The two passengers in the Nissan, 36-year-old Tanner Smith of Cleveland and 36-year-old Meghan Incorvaia of Wakeman, were pronounced dead at the scene. The driver was airlifted to a hospital with life-threatening injuries, and troopers say none of the car's occupants were wearing seatbelts.
Police say numerous drugs were discovered inside the Nissan, including crack cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin, and fentanyl. The three occupants allegedly had warrants out for their arrests, and officers claimed to have "observed a hand-to-hand transaction" prior to initiating the chase.
The driver of the Toyota was taken by ambulance to an Elyria hospital with "serious" injuries, per OSHP. The crash remains under investigation.