FLORENCE, SC (WBTW) – A Florence County deputy was hospitalized after crashing while responding to a manhunt Sunday.
Major Mike Nunn with the Florence County Sheriff’s Office says the K9 tracking team was responding to assist with a manhunt in the area of Queen Anne Road in Quinby Sunday when the deputy was involved in a crash. While Major Nunn could not confirm the severity of the deputy’s injuries, he did say that the deputy and the occupants of the other vehicle involved were taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
The deputy was responding to the manhunt “in emergency mode,” confirms Major Nunn, but it is not known whether the deputy had blue lights and siren active.
Cpl. Sonny Collins with South Carolina Highway Patrol says the crash involving the deputy occurred on Pamplico Highway near Cato Road Sunday around 5:45 p.m. The deputy attempted to pass a car on Pamplico Hwy. and collided with another vehicle head-on in the oncoming traffic lane.
Two people, in addition to the deputy, were taken to the hospital, Cpl. Collins confirms. The crash is under investigation by highway patrol and the Multi-disciplinary Accident Investigation Team (MAIT).
The manhunt the deputy was responding to was the result of a shooting on East Liberty Street Sunday. Florence officers attempted to pull over the suspect, but the driver refused to stop, and eventually ditched the car and ran into the woods off Queen Anne Road in Quinby.
The suspect, Kevin Austin, was eventually captured by the Florence County Sheriff’s Office Tracking Team. Austin faces charges of attempted murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime.
