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Two men die in Northern Liberties crash; DUI charged

A 2017 Jeep Cherokee, traveling east on Spring Garden Street, hit a 2011 Acura at the intersection of Fifth Street, shortly after 4 a.m., police said. The Acura then struck a pedestrian in his 50s in the center median of Spring Garden Street.

File photo.
File photo.Read moreSTAFF

Two men have died after a two-car crash early Saturday in Northern Liberties, and a third has been charged with driving under the influence, according to police.

A 2017 Jeep Cherokee, traveling east on Spring Garden Street, hit a 2011 Acura at the intersection of Fifth Street, with police and ambulance called to the scene shortly after 4 a.m.

Police originally reported that the Acura then struck a pedestrian in the center median of Spring Garden Street. Later Saturday night, police said a review of video of the accident scene revealed that man, Steven Ortiz, 28, of Philadelphia, wasn’t a pedestrian but had been a passenger in the Acura who had been ejected. Taken to Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, he died at 4:34 a.m., police said.

Another passenger in the Acura, a man in his 20s whose name was not provided, also was taken to Jefferson, where he died at 8:35 a.m., police said.

The driver of the Acura, described as a 25-year-old man, was injured. He was taken to Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, where he was listed in stable condition, police said. The driver of the Jeep, a 27-year-old man, was taken to Temple University Hospital, and was arrested.

No other details were available.