Woman steals ambulance, collides with big rig; 2 people dead

A woman armed with a knife stole an ambulance Wednesday and later crashed into a big rig, killing herself and the truck driver, authorities said.

Shortly after 6 p.m., the ambulance collided with the big rig near the Flying J Travel Plaza in Frazier Park, according to Kern County Fire Department spokesman Capt. Tyler Townsend.

The woman and the truck driver, whose identities were not released, were both pronounced dead at the scene, Townsend said.

According to authorities, the woman carjacked the ambulance after paramedics responded to a request for medical aid at a home in the 3900 block of North End Drive, about four miles away from the crash site.

Fire officials say she approached the ambulance brandishing a knife, hopped into the driver’s seat and drove so fast that the gurney tucked in the rear of the ambulance flew out the door, Townsend said.

The crash site is on Frazier Mountain Park Road, less than a quarter mile from Interstate 5. Frazier Park is about 40 miles northwest of Santa Clarita.

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