Road Ranger Seriously Injured After Stopping To Help Driver

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — Two people were seriously injured Sunday when a State Farm road assistance tow truck and a stranded vehicle were involved in a fiery crash.

According to the Florida Highway Patrol, at 7:40 p.m., a Cadillac SUV driven by Sarah Lam, 32, of Bradenton, ran out of gas. Lam pulled over to the outside northbound shoulder of the Howard Frankland Bridge, where State Farm road ranger Adam Lopez, 29, of Tampa, spotted her. Lopez slowed down and entered the outside shoulder to assist Lam.

A tractor-trailer truck headed north abruptly changed lanes to go around Lam and Lopez, cutting off a Chevrolet sedan driven by Alvaro A. Vizcarra, 40, of St. Petersburg. To avoid a collision with the tractor-trailer truck, Vizcarra was forced to veer his car onto the outside shoulder where he struck the rear of the State Farm tow trucks, forcing the truck into the rear of Lam's Cadillac.

The Cadillac and tow truck truck burst into flames. Lopez and a passenger in Lam's SUV, Ngung Thi Nguyen, 67, of Bradenton, were taken to Tampa General Hospital with serious injuries.

The tractor-trailer truck continued on. Anyone with information on the truck is asked to call the FHP at 813-559-1800.