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Florida man's gas pedal gets stuck going 100 mph

By Ray Downs
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Feb. 13 (UPI) -- A Florida man had to call 911 after the gas pedal of his car got stuck while going nearly 100 miles per hour down a busy Florida highway.

"I think my gas pedal is stuck on my car and I'm on I-95," Joseph Cooper, 28, said in a frantic call to 911 as his car bolted down the highway in Indian River County on Florida's east coast.

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When the 911 employee asked Cooper if he tried the emergency brake, he nixed that suggestion.

"Ma'am, I'm not going to do that at 100 mph, I'm sorry," Cooper said, according to a recording of the call obtained by Vero News.

Attempts to put the car in neutral and decelerate didn't work.

"Get out the way!" Cooper says on the recording as he shouted at other drivers

As Cooper's black 2003 BMW X5 sped down the I-95 highway, Florida Highway Patrol troopers and Fellsmere Police Department officers were able to clear traffic in front of him and then put spikes on the road to deflate his tires.

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Once the car's tired were blown out and its speed decreased, troopers were able to bring it to a halt with a PIT maneuver.

Cooper drove approximately 50 miles with his gas pedal stuck before his car was finally stopped.

It's not clear what caused the pedal mishap.

No serious injuries were reported. But after the incident was over, Cooper complained of chest pains and was taken to a nearby hospital.

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