PROVIDENCE -- A naked man drove a car wild and fast on North Main Street at noontime yesterday and wound up hitting a pickup truck stopped for a red light, the police said.

The naked man and the driver of the pickup and his dog were injured, and all three were admitted to hospitals.

Maj. Paul Fitzgerald, commander of the police Uniformed Division, identified the naked man as John Persico, 34, of 9 Beech St., Pawtucket, who suffered severe cuts on his legs and was admitted to Rhode Island Hospital, under guard.

The police did not know where or why Persico shed his clothes, Fitzgerald said. There was no indication that Persico was under the influence of drugs or alcohol, he said.

The driver of the pickup, Michael Sheehan, 56, of 45 Varnum Ave., Pawtucket, was admitted to the Rhode Island Hospital intensive care unit with severe head cuts and neck and back injuries, Fitzgerald said.

A city animal control officer took the dog, which was bleeding, to the East Side Veterinary Clinic for overnight care.

According to an investigation by Patrol Officers John Sigillo and Thomas Connetta Jr., the episode unfolded this way:

Persico got into his car, which was parked on or off North Main Street, and began driving south. Lt. David Schiavulli said his estimated speed was 50 mph, above the posted speed limit.

Persico squeezed his car between two other vehicles and sideswiped a southbound pickup truck in front of the Pep Boys automotive store at 1246 NorthMain St. The driver of that truck, whose identity was not immediately available, was not hurt.

At the intersection of Rochambeau Avenue and North Main Street, Persico's sedan struck Sheehan's pickup truck and spun it around. Both vehicles were heavily damaged.

Despite his injuries, Persico got out of his car and ran across the intersection in an attempt to get away, the police said. But he was tackled and arrested by Sgt. Paul Zienowicz.

Five criminal charges were filed against Persico, the police said: Driving so as to endanger, with personal injury resulting; leaving the scene of an accident involving serious personal injury; leaving the scene of an accident with an attended vehicle, the first pickup truck; and two counts of reckless driving. The first two counts are felonies.

Persico is expected to be arraigned at the hospital this morning, the major said.