ISP: Drunk driver knocks out power

BRAZIL, Ind. (WISH) - A western Indiana man was arrested very early Friday morning after police said he smashed into utility poles, signs and guardrails, knocking out power in a neighborhood along U.S. 40 near the Putnam/Clay county line.

Indiana State Police said Christopher M. Barrow, 26, Brazil, was arrested and preliminarily charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated, endangering a person and leaving the scene of a property damage crash.

The first call came in to police at about 11:20 p.m. from a motorist reporting a suspected drunk driver eastbound on U.S. 40. Callers said a pickup truck was slowing to 40 mph and speeding to 100 mph and veering occasionally into oncoming traffic.

Minutes later, several residents in the Apple Blossom Subdivision called 911 to report a pickup truck “hitting everything.”

Upon arriving, ISP troopers found extensive damage in the neighborhood, including broken utility poles, downed power lines, damaged mailboxes and signs and tire tracks in several yards.

Shortly thereafter, a caller reported the truck had struck a guardrail along U.S. 40 and the main entrance sign to the neighborhood.

At about 12:40 a.m., ISP Trooper Michael Organ found the pickup truck in the median of U.S. 40 about a quarter-mile east of the neighborhood. Further investigation revealed the eastbound truck had also struck a parked semi trailer, gone into the median, into westbound lanes and then struck a guardrail as it tried to cross back over into the eastbound lanes.

Electrical service was disrupted in the Apple Blossom neighborhood Friday morning due to the damage to utility poles. Duke Energy estimated damage at $30,000, and another $10,000 in damage was estimated to private property and the suspect’s vehicle, ISP said.

Barrow was taken to the Putnam County Jail.