A man says he tried to help a Massachusetts State Police trooper immediately after a serious crash on Wednesday before most first responders had arrived.
Emilio Mendez, a contractor, says he was driving on the Mass. Pike to Sturbridge to check out a job and noticed the crash on the side of the road.
Mendez says he, and two other men, tried to use crowbars to help Trooper Thomas Clardy, whose car had just been struck by another driver while he was processing a traffic stop.
The men tried to use the crowbars to open the cruiser’s hood and cut battery power to stop the airbag from deploying, said Mendez.
"We were not able to get it open," said Mendez. "At that point, we decided to smash the window and pull the trooper out."
Mendez says Clardy had passed him on the Mass. Pike five minutes before the crash.
Mendez says a few officers had already arrived at the scene when he was trying to help.
Clardy was rushed to a hospital where he was pronounced dead. Clardy had stopped a car for a traffic violation and returned to his cruiser to process paperwork when another car struck his cruiser.
The driver that struck him, 30-year-old David Njuguna of Wesbter, is facing charges in connection with the crash. Police have suspended and revoked his license.
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