Destin. Fla. (WPMI) The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating an accident that injured one of their own and another Friday night.
Trooper Lester Abreu was conducting field sobriety exercises on a suspected intoxicated driver just after 11 p.m. on Highway 98 near Sandestin Boulevard in Miramar Beach, that's just past Destin.
The suspected intoxicated driver, 41-year-old Eddy Hardy, had been involved in an earlier traffic crash at that same location.
While Trooper Abreu was conducting the sobriety test on Hardy, a Jeep Cherokee, driven by 34-year-old Raul Sivas, hit both the patrol car and Hardy's Ford, causing it to flip.
The patrol car was pushed into Trooper Abreu and Hardy, injuring both.
Trooper Abreu was taken to Sacred Heart Hospital in Sandestin where he was treated and released Saturday morning.
Hardy was flown to Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola via air ambulance with critical injuries.
Sivas's passenger also received minor injuries in the crash and was taken to Emerald Coast Sacred Heart Hospital.
Sivas was arrested and booked into the Walton County Jail. He is charged with DUI with serious bodily injury, driving with a suspended license and given a citation for failure to use due care.
