6 hurt when taxi jumps Midtown curb, plows into pedestrians; group lifts cab off victims
MIDTOWN, Manhattan (WABC) -- Six people were injured when a taxi struck a bicyclist, jumped a curb and plowed into a group of pedestrians in Midtown Manhattan Monday afternoon.
It happened just before 1 p.m. on Broadway at 29th Street.
Authorities say the cab was westbound on 29th Street turning left onto Broadway and had the right of way when a man on a CitiBike rode into his path, causing a collision at the intersection.
Police believe the driver then panicked and hit the gas instead of the brake, careened onto the sidewalk and mowed down several pedestrians and pinned two women underneath the vehicle.
In what NYPD Deputy Police Chief John Chell called a "remarkable scene," between 15 and 20 good Samaritans tried to lift the cab off the victims.
Eyewitness News obtained exclusive video of that effort. Watch it in the video player above.
Authorities say six people were struck by the yellow cab and taken to Bellevue Hospital.
Two of the victims were in surgery Monday evening with leg injuries and are in critical condition, but the NYPD says their injuries are not life threatening.
Four other victims have minor injuries. Of the six injured, two are residents from Columbus, Ohio and another two are from Mexico.
The 60-year-old cab driver, who remained at the scene, also had minor injuries and is not one of the victims in surgery.
Raw video from NewsCopter7 above the scene:
Police officials believe the driver did not have a medical incident, and the investigation is ongoing.
At this time, authorities believe it to be accidental and not criminal in nature.
Mayor Eric Adams toured the scene Monday night and vowed that his administration would learn from this crash to try to prevent it from happening again.
"Traffic safety is all of our concerns, and we are going to continue to push forward to make sure our streets are safe," Adams said.
Police pulled the mangled cab off the sidewalk several hours after the crash.
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