Man was driving 50 mph over speed limit before killing self, passenger near 27th and North

MILWAUKEE -- Two people died and two others were seriously hurt in a crash that happened Tuesday night, Sept. 10 near 27th Street and North Avenue. Officials say one of the cars was going 50 mph over the speed limit when he struck a concrete pole -- killing himself and a 23-year-old passenger in the backseat.

Cellphone video from a witness captured the intense moments following the gruesome crash. Paramedics were seen pulling a victim from the wreckage, badly injured, and load him into an ambulance.

"They had to cut him out of the car. It was bad," said Jessica Rusch, witness.

Jessica Rusch and Mercedes Butts were working near the scene when they heard the impact.

"It wasn't any brake sounds, it just was like a thump. That's when we were like oh my God, what happened," said Butts.

The two women went outside to find a car on the sidewalk across the street with its top ripped off.

"The hood of the car was facing the intersection, so he had to do a complete 180 and hit the pole the way it is," said Rusch.

Police say the driver had lost control of his car while speeding in the bike lane -- a reckless driving trend that's become increasingly common on Milwaukee roads as a way to illegally get around slower traffic. In fact, FOX6 News captured drivers in the same bike lane at the same intersection just hours after the crash.

"Something needs to be done about it because look, now what happened," Rusch said.

As two families now plan funerals and two others pray for their loves ones to pull through, fed up community members wonder when things will change.

"People just need to slow down and be mindful of each other. We have a community here. Take your time, get to where you need to go safely," Butts said.

Police are still notifying the victim's families before releasing their names. That mother says her 21-year-old daughter was conscious and talking at the hospital, the other 21-year-old man who survived was released from the hospital.