IMPAIRED DRIVER ARRESTED AFTER PICKUP TRUCK CRASHES INTO TREES

(May 15th)

In the early morning hours of Friday (May 15th), emergency crews responded to a single-vehicle crash on the eastbound off-ramp from the Outer Ring Road to Thorburn Road in St. John’s.

At approximately 12:20 a.m., firefighters with the St. John’s Regional Fire Department, along with the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary and NL Health Services, were called to the scene.

When firefighters arrived, they located the pickup truck submerged deep in the trees with the driver still inside the vehicle. Crews quickly worked to reach the driver, using chainsaws to cut away several trees in order to gain access.

Once the male driver was able to get out of the truck, firefighters assisted him up the embankment to the side of the roadway, where paramedics assessed him inside an ambulance as a precaution. The driver was later released after it was determined he had not sustained any injuries.

The RNC remained on the scene with the off-ramp closed for the investigation. It appeared that the 21-year-old driver had been travelling eastbound on the Outer Ring Road when he left the roadway at the beginning of the Thorburn Road off-ramp, travelled down an embankment, struck numerous trees, and came to rest in a larger group of trees.

During the police investigation, officers determined the driver was under the influence of alcohol. The man was arrested and later charged with impaired driving and operating a vehicle over .80 mg/ml.

He was released to appear in court at a later date.