NORTHAMPTON — Two drivers were arrested and charged with multiple offenses in separate hit-and-run incidents Friday evening, police reported in a post on the department’s Facebook page.

In the first case, police pursuing a hit-and-run suspect at approximately 6:20 p.m. said they were unable to stop the driver, who kept going even after popping more than one of his vehicle’s tires on a curb.

The vehicle then drove over a median, through a traffic sign, crashed into another vehicle, and drove across a residential lawn, narrowly missing a utility pole, according to police.

The suspect drove down a dead-end street and then put his vehicle into reverse and rammed two officers’ cruisers, police said. The driver then headed down a second dead-end street at which point he could not continue. He was arrested after running for the nearest tree line.

The 42-year-old Florence man, whom police did not identify, was charged with operating under the influence of drugs, four counts of leaving the scene of property damage, reckless operation and failure to stop for police, among other offenses.

A few hours later, shortly before 10 p.m., police received a report of a hit-and-run in which a vehicle had driven into a building downtown and taken off.

An officer spotted the suspect vehicle driving down Main Street with heavy front end damage, but when the officer pulled in behind, the driver took off at high speed, weaving in and out of the oncoming traffic lane, according to police.

When the suspect pulled onto a side street with only one outlet, multiple additional officers were able to block the vehicle in from the opposite direction, and the driver was arrested.

The 26-year-old Hatfield man was charged with operating under the influence of liquor, leaving the scene of property damage, negligent operation of a motor vehicle and failure to stop for police.

Police said no officers or civilians were injured during either incident.

In reference to the first incident, the police post stated that, “Due to the multiple crashes throughout town, the entire shift was on this call. Officers from the midnight shift were contacted to report in early to assist.”

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