WATCH: Tacoma police cruiser strikes one person while trying to escape a mob attacking the vehicle

A violent mob surrounded a Tacoma, WA police cruiser Saturday night and the police, while trying to extricate themselves, stuck one of the people attacking the vehicle. WARNING: GRAPHIC VIDEO

In a statement, Tacoma police said they were called after drivers blocked an intersection and were performing doughnuts, burnouts and other street racing activities at South Ninth and Pacific in Tacoma. According to the Tacoma Police Department (TPD), "At approximately 6:19 p.m. this evening, South Sound 911 received numerous reports of an incident occurring at the intersection of South 9th and Pacific Avenue in Tacoma. There were multiple vehicles and approximately 100 people present blocking the intersection when officers arrived on scene."

When a police cruiser arrived, the spectators surrounded the police vehicle to try and prevent him from leaving and attacked the vehicle. TPD said, "Tacoma Police officers responding to the location began clearing the intersection of vehicles and people for the safety of those gathered and people trying to use the street. During the operation, a responding Tacoma police vehicle was surrounded by the crowd. People hit the body of the police vehicle and its windows as the officer was stopped in the street. The officer, fearing for his safety, tried to back up, but was unable to do so because of the crowd."

While trying to extricate themselves from the crowd in what the officers called an "unsafe position," with their lights and sirens activated according to TPD, "the officer drove forward striking one individual and may have impacted others. The officer stopped at a point of safety and called for medical aid. One person was transported to an area hospital."

Anti police activists on social media tried to claim that the impact was unprovked or that the officer hit the person intentionally. Witnesses refuted the claim with video and said that the mob was trying to break the windows of the cruiser and were screaming about trying to get to the officer inside.

Following the incident, Antifa and Black Lives Matter protesters showed up at the scene and Antifa members were seen lighting fires in intersections and worked to prevent people from taking video of their activites. Antifa has already cancelled one event in order to protest at the site of the incident Sunday night. TPD has contacted the Pierce County Force Investigation Team (PCFIT) and turned the investigation over to them to conduct an independent investigation of the incident.