Transantiago bus crashes into National Police patrol car

SANTIAGO.- At approximately 3:00 AM this morning, a National Police patrol car that was stopped at a police checkpoint was hit by a Transantiago bus in the municipality of Quilicura.

Fortunately however, Officers Roberto Manríquez and Luis Riffo Pérez managed to escape with their lives since, just shortly before the incident; they had abandoned the vehicle on the corner of Manuel Antonio Matta and El Talhuén to stop a car that was carrying a man suspected of micro drug-trafficking.

While the policemen were performing a background check on the suspect, a reconditioned Transantiago bus from the 309 Maipú-Quilicura route crashed into the police car, dragging it for almost 20 meters and leaving it flipped over on the side of the road.

The driver of the bus, 28 year-old Victor Hugo Riquelme, is being questioned by law enforcement officers to determine his degree of responsibility in the crash.  According to initial reports, the driver said that he had felt heart pains and maybe was having an attack, although officials are also speculating that the collision may have been caused by reduced visibility due to fog.