Video: Woman in Stolen RV Leads Police on High-Speed Chase in California

A stock photo of police tape. Scott Olson/Getty Images

Disturbing footage has surfaced of a driver with two dogs in a stolen RV fleeing the police in a high-speed chase in the Los Angeles area, clipping objects and demolishing cars during the wild ride.

The video, shared in a tweet by Good Morning America, showed snippets of the chase along the streets of the San Fernando Valley on Tuesday, May 21, before it ended in a crash in Tarzana.

The 52-year-old female driver, identified in a CBSLA report as Julie Ann Rainbird of Winnetka, allegedly stole the motor home from Simi Valley before evading police and coming to a violent halt in a residential area.

Aerial cameras captured the pursuit, which showed the vehicle careening through busy intersections and smashing into cars that were left spinning and damaged.

At one point the driver tried to make a u-turn but clipped a tree, tearing off one side of the RV and smashing the windshield.

As the damaged vehicle kept speeding along, a close-up shot of the RV showed a terrified dog leap out of the window and somersault onto the road below. The dog did not appear to be seriously injured and waddled off the road as the chase continued.

Later, a second dog tried to escape through the gaping hole in the front of the vehicle, but was held back by the woman.

Eventually, around 7:30 p.m., the RV plowed into a white car pulling into a driveway in a Tarzana neighborhood, and the pursuit ground to halt.

NBC San Diego reported the occupant of the white car appeared to be hurt. In total, the RV slammed into six vehicles.

The other dog then fled from the wreckage, as did the driver, who continued to escape on foot. Video showed an officer taking the suspect down moments later and making an arrest.

CBSLA reported neither dog sustained serious injuries and both were taken into custody by animal control.

According to the Daily Mail, three people were hospitalized due to the chase.

Mother and Child Killed In Head-On Collision With Semi

In a separate incident, North Carolina deputies said a woman and her 11-year-old daughter were killed when their vehicle collided head-on with a tractor-trailer.

North Carolina State Patrol officials were cited by WTVD as saying that 46-year-old Venita Greene Vandergriff was tragically killed when her SUV crossed the center line on U.S. 421 North in Harnett County and struck the semi.

The deadly collision took place early Tuesday morning.

Vandergriff and her 11-year-old were pronounced dead on the scene, WNCN reported, while the little girl’s twin sister, who was also in the car at the time of the accident, was taken to hospital with undisclosed injuries.

WRAL reported the surviving twin was taken to Cape Fear Valley Medical Center in serious condition.

Deputies cited by WRAL said the cause of the accident is not known, but they don’t suspect alcohol or drugs were a factor.

The tractor-trailer driver, identified as 24-year-old Paul Lanex, suffered minor injuries. According to CBS17, the driver was treated and released.

Troopers are continuing to investigate the circumstances of the crash.

Crash Deaths in the United States

Tens of thousands of people are killed and millions injured each year from motor vehicle crashes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC says these deaths cost more than $380 million in direct medical costs.

The major risk factors for crash deaths in the US are: not using seat belts, car seats, or booster seats (factors in over 9,500 crash deaths); drunk driving (a factor in more than 10,000 crash deaths); and speeding (contributing to more than 9,500 crash deaths).

According to 2017 data from the CDC, the ten leading causes of death in the United States were: heart disease, cancer, unintentional injuries, chronic lower respiratory diseases, stroke, Alzheimer disease, diabetes, influenza and pneumonia, kidney disease, and suicide.

Age-adjusted death rates for the 10 leading causes of death in the United States for the years 2016 and 2017. CDC

The most common are unintentional poisoning deaths (58,335), followed by motor vehicle traffic deaths (40,327), and unintentional fall deaths in third place (34,673).

The total number of emergency department visits for unintentional injuries in the United States in 2017 was 30.8 million, according to the CDC.

The ten leading causes accounted for 74 percent of all deaths in the United States in 2017.