On Wednesday night, a truck driver led police on a pursuit from Virginia into North Carolina, and the video is well worth a watch.
Police say that the incident started on I-81 in Virginia when a truck driver refused to pull over for an officer who initiated the traffic stop because the driver was operating in the left lane in a restricted area.
The pursuit crossed over into North Carolina.
Video captured at the I-77 weigh station shows troopers attempting to use stop sticks to slow down the speeding semi.
The Facebook user who used the video wrote, “Just happening. Like Smokey and the Bandit. NC Surry Co Trooper throws out stop sticks attempting to stop chase coming out of Va. into NC at the Weigh Station. Truck keeps on getting it. You can hear the stop sticks dragging the road as he crosses in front of me at the Weigh Station, they are stuck under the truck. Great job operating the camera Ricky Blizzard. The chase is still ongoing.”
The stop sticks didn’t put an immediate stop to the truck driver as he continued down the interstate on his rims. Eventually, the truck caught fire and came to a stop in the northbound lanes of I-77 Exit 65.
Three Virginia State Police cruisers were damaged in the pursuit, but no officers were hurt.
Firefighters say that the truck driver was treated for burns.
The incident shut down both directions of I-77 for hours.
WXII12 reports that the truck driver was arrested and faces multiple charges.
