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Georgia officer airlifted to hospital after tire failed, slams into tree, GSP says

They say the officer was responding to a call when his patrol car's tire failed. He would be airlifted to the hospital after slamming into a tree.

BARNESVILLE, Ga. — A Barnesville Police officer was airlifted to the hospital after a serious crash on SR-7, according to a report from the Georgia State Patrol.

The report says Officer Patrick Saunders, 37, was heading southbound on SR-7 on July 13 while responding to an emergency call when his left rear tire failed. They say the car began to spin out for roughly 300 feet, crossed the center line and eventually ran "off the roadway right fully sideways."

That's when they say the car continued to rotate clockwise while traveling down a hill for another 194 feet. 

Roughly 500 feet after Saunders' tire failed, the report says his patrol car struck a tree on the passenger side of the vehicle. 

Witnesses say he was traveling at "a high rate of speed" when the tire failure happened.

The report says Saunders was taken to Atrium Health Navicent by helicopter with what they believe are serious injuries. 

Credit: GSP
The Georgia State Patrol report included this diagram illustrating the crash's trajectory. They note the diagram is not to scale.

According to the report, Saunders was the only vehicle involved in the crash.

It is unclear what Saunders' condition is as of now. According to the state patrol, his status has not been updated since the crash.

We've reached out to the Barnesville Police Department for more information in hopes of learning more. We will update this story as more information becomes available.

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