Pittsfield Car Crash Knocks Radio Stations Off Air
Update: Police identify suspect in chase.
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A police pursuit that ended in a crash reportedly cut power temporarily to four local radio stations on Monday and set the car on fire.
The suspect in the pursuit, Anthony Winters, 27, of Pittsfield, was charged with numerous motor vehicle offenses as well as assault and battery with a dangerous weapon (motor vehicle.)
Live 95.9-FM and 1420-AM went off the air around 9:30 a.m., according to their Facebook posts.
"Due to an emergency and technical difficulties, we are currently off-air. Engineers are working as quickly as possible to get the station back up and running. Thank you for your patience," 95.9 posted.
According to police, an officer made a motor vehicle stop for civil traffic infractions in the area of West and Edwin Streets. The operator of the vehicle initially stopped but then fled the scene "making contact" with the officer in the process of fleeing. The pursuit traveled on West to Jason Street.
The suspect vehicle lost control in the 200 block, colliding with the utility pole. The crash broke the pole and resulted in the power outage and the motor vehicle catching fire. The suspect fled on foot and was apprehended a short time later in the vicinity of the crash.
David Isby, with the stations' owner Townsquare Media, came by the accident, which he posted on Facebook.
"High speed chase on Jason Street - driver snapped pole in half - then exited vehicle and ran," he posted, with pictures of the car catching on fire. "What's more 4 radio stations are off the air until power gets restored or the generator at studios (which kicked on) gets working properly!!"
The images show a dark colored, late model four-door car smashed front-end first into a guardrail — right below a deer crossing sign — and a pole and wires laying the road. First the car is smoking with driver's side door open and then fully ablaze. Firefighters reportedly had to wait until Eversource could cut power before attempting to douse the fire.
Jason Street was closed for several hours while utility companies restored power and was reopened around 2:30 p.m. The officer was not injured and returned to work shortly after. Winters was treated for minor injuries at Berkshire Medical Center and then discharged.
Tags: police chase, power outage,
