Bizarre San Francisco crash draws onlookers

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (KTVU) - A bizarre crash in San Francisco's South of Market neighborhood Wednesday afternoon drew crowds of onlookers. The accident happened on Bryant Street near the Bay Bridge on-ramp shortly after 1:30 p.m.

"All of a sudden (there was a) screech of tires and a big bang," said John Czinczoll, who heard the crash from across the street. "It was frightening to see a truck up in the air like that and a cab underneath it."

"You don't see stuff like that every day," said Dante Capozzola, who was working in an office overlooking the crash scene.

Capozzola said he was on a business call when he heard the sound of metal, scraping and crunching, just outside his window.

"Literally (it was) like nothing I've ever seen, like out of a movie," said Capozzola. "The car was probably elevated 10 feet in the air sitting on top of a Prius. It looked fake."

Officers said the taxi and a gray sedan crashed, sending the cab into -- and underneath -- an unoccupied white truck parked on the side of the street. Witnesses said the taxi driver stumbled out, disoriented.

"The driver was really frazzled. He took a seat on the curb and actually smoked a cigarette," said Capozzola.

Relatives of the taxi driver said he is in some pain, but has been released from the hospital.

The impact of the crash also sent the truck into a parked Mercedes SUV in front of it. The owner of the SUV, Frankie Frankeny, said she was loading equipment into her vehicle when she heard the crash.

"I was glad I wasn't standing, loading my truck from behind because I would have been sandwiched between the two," said Frankeny.

She said the only reason she was loading her SUV from the side door is because the parking spot was so small, she didn't think she could get the trunk open.

"I was very lucky today. And everyone was very lucky today (that no one was seriously hurt)," Frankeny.