GREENBRAE CA - JANUARY 2: Two pickup trucks sit among the debris of their collision on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard in front of Bon Air Shopping Center in Greenbrae, Calif. on Thursday, Jan. 2, 2020. (Alan Dep/Marin Independent Journal)

GREENBRAE CA - JANUARY 2: A wrecked pickup truck sits next to a Kentfield fire truck after a collision on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard in front of Bon Air Shopping Center in Greenbrae, Calif. on Thursday, Jan. 2, 2020. (Alan Dep/Marin Independent Journal)

GREENBRAE CA - JANUARY 2: First responders work at the scene of a fatal traffic collision on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard in front of Bon Air Shopping Center in Greenbrae, Calif. on Thursday, Jan. 2, 2020. (Alan Dep/Marin Independent Journal)



GREENBRAE CA - JANUARY 2: First responders work at the scene of a fatal traffic collision on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard in front of Bon Air Shopping Center in Greenbrae, Calif. on Thursday, Jan. 2, 2020. (Alan Dep/Marin Independent Journal)

GREENBRAE CA - JANUARY 2: First responders work at the scene of a fatal traffic collision on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard in front of Bon Air Shopping Center in Greenbrae, Calif. on Thursday, Jan. 2, 2020. (Alan Dep/Marin Independent Journal)

GREENBRAE CA - JANUARY 2: First responders work at the scene of a fatal traffic collision on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard at La Cuesta Drive in Greenbrae, Calif. on Thursday, Jan. 2, 2020. (Alan Dep/Marin Independent Journal)



GREENBRAE CA - JANUARY 2: A wrecked pickup truck sits next to a Kentfield fire engine on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard in front of Bon Air Shopping Center in Greenbrae, Calif. on Thursday, Jan. 2, 2020. (Alan Dep/Marin Independent Journal)

GREENBRAE CA - JANUARY 2: Debris from a fatal traffic collision is scattered on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard in front of Bon Air Shopping Center in Greenbrae, Calif. on Thursday, Jan. 2, 2020. (Alan Dep/Marin Independent Journal)

A suspect fleeing from police in San Rafael crashed and died Thursday on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard in Greenbrae.

The crash happened at about 5 p.m. at the intersection of La Cuesta Drive. The driver of another car involved in the collision was not injured.

The chase started at the Marin Square shopping center near the junction of Highway 101 and Interstate 580 in San Rafael. The California Highway Patrol was responding to an unrelated incident when officers saw a man brandishing a tire iron near some parked cars, said CHP Officer Patrick Roth. Police saw shattered glass on the ground near the cars.

When the suspect saw the police, he fled in his truck. The CHP chased him south on Highway 101 and followed him when he headed west on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard, Roth said.

As the suspect raced past the Bon Air Shopping Center, he was struck by a vehicle making a left turn to Sir Francis Drake Boulevard. The suspect’s truck smashed into a utility pole and other street fixtures near the Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage office.

“It felt like an airplane hit the building,” said broker David Smadbeck. “When I ran out, the police were already here.”

Authorities pronounced the 59-year-old suspect dead at the scene. Coroner’s investigators were working to confirm his identity and notify close family before releasing his name to the public.

The collision sprayed glass and vehicle parts throughout the intersection. In addition to the CHP, Central Marin police and San Rafael police responded to the crash site with Kentfield and Central Marin firefighters.

The ensuing traffic jam prompted heavy delays along Sir Francis Drake Boulevard and the ramps from Highway 101. Terez Toneff, a San Anselmo resident returning home from work in Mill Valley, said it took her 30 minutes to get from the freeway to Bon Air Shopping Center.

“I’ve lived here a long time, I’ve never seen anything like this,” she said. “I travel this road every day. … This is really startling.”

A third vehicle was towed away after sustaining major damage on the other side of the intersection. The CHP was investigating its involvement in the incident.