Martin Mack III and Branden T Sisca: Two state troopers killed after being run over by 'drunk' woman
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA: Two Pennsylvania state troopers and a civilian were run over and killed on I-95 in South Philadelphia by a woman who had been stopped on suspicion of DUI just moments before. The crash happened on the southbound lanes near the Broad Street exit around 12:40 am on Monday, March 21.
Pennsylvania State Police during a press conference said that the 33-year-old Trooper Martin F Mack III and 29-year-old Trooper Branden T Sisca were responding to reports of a man walking along I-95 south when the incident happened. Authorities say the troopers were helping the man get into the back of their cruiser when a woman attempted to drive past them at high speed. "The impact was so great that it threw the troopers over into the northbound lanes of Interstate 95," said Pennsylvania State Police Capt. James Kemm. Witnesses attempted CPR but all three men were pronounced dead at the scene.
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Video of the incident shows a police cruiser along the divider with its airbags deployed. A silver SUV with extensive damage to the front sat nearby. Police officers rode down I-95 North in a procession Monday morning, hours after the three men died near milepost 18. The authorities said after the woman struck the men, the vehicle hit a barrier and continued a short distance before coming to a rest on the highway's right-side shoulder.
The woman who struck the troopers had been stopped on suspicion of driving under influence moments earlier, but officers had to leave her after they got a call about a man walking down the highway.
State police informed that the woman remained at the scene. It is not clear why the man was walking or why he was being taken into custody. The civilian's name has not been released as police try to contact his family. It is also not clear if the woman who was detained, but police say that a DUI investigation is now underway.
Trooper Mack, 33, joined the state police in November 2014. He was a 2006 graduate of Monsignor Bonner High school and was married with two children and lived in Bristol Township, Bucks County, according to WCAU. Sisca, 29, joined the force in February 2021 after graduating from West Chester University in 2014. Both troopers spent their entire careers assigned to the Patrol Section of Troop K in Philadelphia.
Commissioner Robert Evanchick in a statement said, "Our department is heartbroken with the tragedy that occurred early this morning in Philadelphia. We ask our fellow Pennsylvanians to keep the families of our troopers and the pedestrian in their thoughts. This is an extremely difficult time."
Meanwhile, Governor Tom Wolf ordered all flags in state and public buildings throughout Pennsylvania to be flown at half-staff until sunset Friday in honor of Mack and Sisca. Wolf said, "This is a heartbreaking tragedy that occurred while these troopers were protecting and serving. This mournful incident is a stark reminder of the risks and sacrifices - our law enforcement officers undertake every day to keep us safe. My heart goes out to their families and the communities they lived in and served."
