Wednesday, March 15, 2023
Three persons died at the scene after an overnight crash on Rock Creek Parkway — and two others are hospitalized. The head-on collision, involving two vehicles, occurred around 1:40 a.m., Wednesday, March 15., just south of the P Street parkway ramp in Georgetown.
According to U.S. Park Police, one of the vehicles involved in the crash fled a traffic stop in the southbound lane near Virginia Avenue NW and the Watergate complex, just before the crash. USPP did not pursue. Park Police Sgt. Thomas Twiname told media at the scene: “If a vehicle flees a traffic stop, we have policies and procedures that guide our actions. Our officers are required to abide by those policies and procedures, and in this instance, the officer determined that the vehicle that fled did not meet the criteria for a pursuit and so they did not pursue the vehicle.”
The three who died were in the same vehicle; the two injured, in the other, according USPP. Police did not specify who was in which vehicle — nor which vehicle was the one that got stopped by police earlier. The crash involved what looked like a Lexus SUV and a Honda sedan.
Melanie Alnwick of Fox 5 News said, “Witnesses report hearing an odd boom sound around the same time as the crash. Witnesses also say other drivers at the scene were out of their vehicles trying to help those involved in the crash.”
The incident remains under investigation. Road closures were lifted at 11:30 a.m.
Anyone having information on the crash can contact the U.S. Park Police’s tip line — uspp_tipeline@nps.gov.
The aftermath of a two-vehicle crash on Rock Creek Parkway that killed three persons, as seen from Rose Park in Georgetown. Photo by Robert Devaney.