August 28, 2005 (8:48am) A single car collision at 3 a.m. Sunday resulted in a secondary accident involving a Metrobus and closed southbound New Hampshire Avenue for more than five hours. Three occupants of the vehicle, reported stolen in Prince George’s County, were transported to local hospitals.
The southbound vehicle collided with a retaining wire on a utility pole and knocked down a highway sign before going over the median and striking a parked car on a service road. The car then careened into a residential yard where it struck two trees before stopping.
A Metrobus, braking to stop, skidded on the downed sign and struck a vehicle that had stopped when it witnessed the collision. No injuries were reported in this secondary accident. The Metrobus did not have any passengers.
The vehicle in the main accident, a Honda Accord, had been reported stolen in Prince George’s County in July. Later two men, who went to a local hospital on their own, were determined also to have been in the stolen car. The 20-year-old driver of the Accord was reported in satisfactory condition.
Initial investigation suggests speed was a factor in the collision, which occurred on wet roads. Charges are pending. The road was closed to repair utility poles and low-hanging wires at Holton and New Hampshire and reopened at about 8:30 a.m.