MILWAUKEE — Three people are dead after a police pursuit ended in a crash with the suspect vehicle going over the 16th Street Viaduct and catching fire on Thursday.
According to Milwaukee police, officers assigned to District 2 pursued a vehicle involved in drug dealing and reckless driving shortly before 6 p.m.
Prior to the incident, police say officers saw occupants of a Toyota Avalon at 22nd and Mineral involved in a suspected drug deal. When officers attempted a traffic stop, the suspects fled recklessly and a police pursuit was initiated.
After nearly a minute, the suspect vehicle fled across the 16th Street Viaduct, crossed the center line, and started to leave the roadway, police said.
WATCH: Milwaukee police provide update on 16th Street Viaduct fatal crash
Once the car crossed the sidewalk, an 18-year-old Milwaukee woman was hit by the vehicle. The pedestrian was transported to the hospital with a minor injury.
The vehicle then crashed through the safety fence and fell below the bridge and caught on fire. Officers began rendering aid to the three occupants of the suspect vehicle and the pedestrian.
The Milwaukee Fire Department responded and the three occupants of the suspect vehicle were pronounced dead. Police say the suspects appear to be three adult males but are yet to be identified.
The Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's Office, however, said one of the suspects was a 34-year-old man and another was a 44-year-old man.
A witness tells TMJ4 News she saw the crash.
"It was shocking, I never experienced that," Mimi Reza said. "He (the driver) lost control. He was going 80, 90 (miles per hour)."
Reza said she was coming up the bridge when the vehicle came down National followed by multiple police cars. She said she witnessed the vehicle go over the 16th Street Viaduct.
"He (the driver) went over the bridge, you just hear the screeching, the banging, an explosion," Reza said. "It was a sad incident. It's really sad they had to lose it (their lives) that way."
The area of 16th and Canal was shut down during the investigation.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
