(01-01) 17:19 PST SAN FRANCISCO -- A driver fleeing from a police traffic stop crashed into a vehicle in San Francisco's Mission District on Tuesday morning, killing a female passenger in the second car and a pedestrian outside a corner store.

The suspect suffered minor injuries while the driver of the other vehicle, a white Toyota, was taken to San Francisco General Hospital with life-threatening injuries, Police Chief Greg Suhr said.

The crash occurred about 8 a.m. at the corner of 21st Street and South Van Ness Avenue.

Less than 15 minutes earlier, police responded to reports of shots fired from a black Chevrolet Impala at the Valencia Gardens housing project at 14th and Guerrero streets. About five minutes later, officers spotted a vehicle matching that description several blocks away and pulled it over, Suhr said.

As the police approached the vehicle, the driver sped away, east on 21st Street, running through two intersections before ramming the Toyota traveling north on South Van Ness Avenue.

The Toyota spun through the intersection, slammed into a pedestrian and came to rest sideways, blocking the entrance to Muzio's Wine Liquor corner store. The battered Impala stopped on 21st Street, several feet away.

Glass and metal pieces of the cars were strewn 30 feet down the sidewalk.

"It was like an explosion," said Chris Roberts, who lives around the corner from the scene. "You heard this huge boom."

Rudy Padilla, who lives above the liquor store, felt the building shake from the crash and saw police immediately surround the suspect's vehicle with their guns drawn.

The Toyota's passenger, a woman in her mid-20s, was declared dead at the scene, as was the male pedestrian, , Suhr said.

"Obviously this is an unbelievable tragedy," Suhr said.

The male victim was identified as Francisco Gutierrez, 26, of San Francisco.

The identities of the others involved in the crash were not immediately available, but the male suspect, in his mid-20s, was someone known to police, Suhr said, declining to give further information.

A gun was found inside his car, the police chief said. The suspect was taken into custody and transported to San Francisco General Hospital for treatment of his injuries.

The chief said details of the crash are still under investigation, including how fast the Impala was going. The department's Gang Task Force also is involved in the investigation.

Suhr emphasized that the crash occurred before police officers had time to even start a pursuit when the suspect fled the traffic stop.

Police were reviewing video of the crash taken from inside the corner store, as well as any others available in the area.

Emergency workers cordoned off the blocks immediately surrounding the scene and diverted traffic through the morning.