PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — A trooper with the Florida Highway Patrol was killed in a vehicle collision that occurred during a pursuit, Treasure Coast Palm reported.
FHP identified the trooper as 26-year-old Zachary Fink. The agency said he was killed while trying to apprehend a fleeing suspect.
Fink was trying to stop the fleeing motorist, who was driving recklessly on I-95. The suspect made a U-turn and began traveling the wrong way, and Fink followed.
At that point, Fink was struck by the driver of the tractor-trailer. Both Fink and the truck driver were killed, reported WPBF.
The Officer Down Memorial Page provided the following details:
Trooper Zachary Fink was killed in a vehicle crash during a pursuit on Interstate 95 north at Crosstown Parkway near Port St. Lucie at 3:00 a.m.
At 2:40 am, the subject was speeding and reckless driving on I-95, and St. Lucie deputies attempted to initiate a traffic stop. Other agencies joined the pursuit when the subject did not stop. The subject made a U-turn on Interstate 95, driving southbound in the northbound lanes on I-95. Trooper Fink initiated a U-turn to stop the vehicle and was struck by a semi-tractor trailer.
Trooper Fink was transported to HCA Lawnwood Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. The driver of the tractor-trailer was also killed.
The pursuit continued, with the subject driving the wrong way on I-95. He eventually crashed and fled on foot. He was apprehended at 8:06 a.m.
Fink was a three-year law enforcement veteran with the Florida Highway Patrol. He is survived by his mother, father, and fiancée.
He is the 53rd Florida state trooper to suffer a line-of-duty death.
