ATLANTA (AP) — Police say a patient bolted from an ambulance, ran across several lanes of traffic and was struck and killed, shutting down early morning traffic on one of metro Atlanta's busiest interstates.

Atlanta police say the ambulance was transporting the patient to Grady Memorial Hospital for an evaluation before dawn Monday, when he became agitated and removed his restraints.

Atlanta police Officer Kim Jones says that when the ambulance pulled over on the shoulder of the Downtown Connector, the patient got out and ran across five lanes of traffic.

Police said he then tried to run back into traffic, where he was hit by a Honda Accord and became trapped under another vehicle. His name wasn't released.

The crash blocked all northbound lanes of the freeway for a time, jamming traffic near the start of the morning rush hour.