Source: Paul Archuleta / Getty
In the early hours of New Year’s Day, a crazed driver in New York City injured a number of people on the streets of Manhattan in an attempt to evade police. As it turns out, one of those injured in the incident was Black Panther actress, Carrie Bernans.
According to the New York Daily News, Bernans was badly injured in the midtown melee caused by 44-year-old Mohamed Alaouie after he hopped in his SUV and tried to avoid being arrested after witnesses say he assaulted his girlfriend in plain view on 33rd Street and 7th Avenue. When pedestrians intervened and flagged down police, Alaouie put the pedal to the metal and made a break for it. In the process, he injured multiple police officers, crashed into a few cars and ultimately slammed into a halal truck on West 34th Street near 9th Avenue around 1:45 a.m.
Unfortunately, Carrie Bernans and her friends were taking cover behind said halal truck and took the brunt of the impact from the crash.
The New York Daily News reports:
“A car was trying to get away from the cops chasing him,” Hansson wrote in her own hospital bed Instagram post. “He was recklessly driving into other cars and we were hiding behind a food truck.”
She said the car drove “full speed into the truck” and knocked her and Bernans to the ground, where they lay unconscious. A third woman with them who was not struck helped them, she added.
Hansson’s post was accompanied by pictures of her wearing a neck brace below her bloodied face.
But it was Bernans who got the worst of it. Several of her bones were broken and several teeth were chipped in the crash, grisly photos posted on social media show.
The new mother’s family posted a GoFundMe page soliciting donations to pay for medical bills, physical rehabilitation and child care to help with her 8-month-old baby.
She said she is unable to breastfeed her little baby boy, who was not with her at the time of the incident.
Ultimately, Alaouie was taken into police custody and is facing multiple accounts of assault, attempted murder of a police officer, and of course, reckless driving along with drug possession charges. Judging from the witnesses on hand, he’s more than likely going to be found guilty of everything he’s been slapped with.
Carrie Bernans’ mother posted a picture of her daughter’s injuries on Instagram. She thanked everyone for their support and stated that this tragedy only reinforced her faith in the Almighty. “This setback hasn’t deterred her belief that something remarkable is still being crafted by God. Despite the injuries sustained in the collision caused by a hit-and-run in NYC, she’s filled with hope and faith in the unfolding of a beautiful new chapter. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers as she navigate this path toward recovery and new beginnings,” Bernans’ mother wrote.
Prayers up for Carrie Bernans and her family as she recovers from this traumatic incident.
