Pittsburgh and Allegheny County police pursued a Chevrolet Silverado that circled around the city and I-379 in light to medium traffic for nearly half an hour at speeds reaching nearly 100 mph, with the chase being visible from campus.

According to Pittsburgh police dispatchers, the driver of the Silverado, 35-year-old Marc Smith, was allegedly involved in a domestic incident earlier in the day and had felony warrants for aggravated assault and strangulation, which meets the threshold for Pittsburgh police to initiate a pursuit.

Pittsburgh police often do not pursue people fleeing in a vehicle due to potential risks to police officers, motorists and pedestrians. However, when criteria such as possible harm to people nearby as well as the severity of the fleeing suspect’s charges are met, then a pursuit may be authorized.

The truck passed a plate reader while heading inbound at the intersection of Library Road and Route 51, which led officers to quickly find and catch up to the truck. When officers caught up to Smith, he allegedly pulled over for a moment and then drove back onto Route 51, passing the Steamfitters #449 building on Woodruff Street.

After this point, the truck made its way towards the West End Bridge and then onto West Carson Street, going through the West End into the South Side. Eventually, the truck made it to the Fort Duquesne Bridge, which can be seen from campus.

A student watching the chase from outside Conestoga Hall who did not want to be identified said that he saw at least 40 police cars speeding through the Penn-Lincoln Highway, commonly referred to as “the bathtub” due to it filling up with water during major rainstorms.

The chase varied in speed from 20 mph to 100 mph. The Silverado Smith was driving has a maximum speed of 100 mph.

Once the chase went from I-376 to a mile behind the Squirrel Hill tunnel, spike strips were deployed, and the truck drove right over them. An unknown object began dragging underneath the frame of the truck according to Pittsburgh police.

After the spike strips were deployed, Smith allegedly turned the truck around back onto I-376 instead of going straight towards the Waterfront outdoor shopping mall in Homestead.

Once turning around, the chase stayed on I-376 East for several minutes. Spike strips were thrown onto the road a second time right before reaching the Fort Pitt Bridge.

It is unclear if the truck hit the second set of spike strips, but a Pittsburgh police officer said that the front passenger side tire of the truck was “definitely gone,” causing sparks to fly from the wheels. After going through the Fort Pitt Tunnel, the pursuit was once again visible from campus.

Once the pursuit left the tunnel, police chased the truck back around the West End and then looped back into the Fort Pitt Tunnel, going in circles. After leaving the tunnel a second time, Smith allegedly drove the truck towards I-279 North, crashing into another car. The person hit was not injured.

Shortly after Smith allegedly smashed into another driver, he stopped the truck near the North Hills. Smith allegedly did not flee on foot. Afterwards, the truck’s engine caught on fire.

According to KDKA, Smith resisted arrest and had to be tased and punched multiple times before he was handcuffed. Smith also reached for his waistband, which made officers believe he was going to try and retrieve a firearm.

It is unknown how many officers responded to the chase, but at least 22 police cars could be seen from the Fort Duquesne Bridge, with one police car passing by Conestoga Hall to reach the other cars. When Pittsburgh Fire responded to the burning truck, a firefighter said that they were with “every cop in the county and the state.”

Inside the truck were at least 65 bricks of heroin and other drugs. After the chase ended, Smith was allegedly placed in an unmarked van with a police motorcycle surrounding it in a motorcade.

Smith is currently held at the Allegheny County Jail. It is unclear if he has any bond set.